What is Netanyahu's goal in the US-Israel war with Iran? | Global News Podcast

Welcome to the BBC's Global News podcast. on YouTube. Hello, I'm Janet Jalil. And. today, we're looking specifically at. what Israel wants from the war with. Iran. We're joined from Jerusalem by our. correspondent John Donnison. And John, what do you think, as far as you can. assess it, is Israel's end goal with. this war in Iran? Well, if we go on what they've been. saying, they want regime change. They. want a non-Islamic regime in charge of.

Iran. And they want the kind of people. we saw in those protests. rising up at the start of the year. across Iran. Protests that were. um. bat- batted down by these Iranian. authorities. They want those people to. rise up again. But I have heard other. people. I- Israeli analysts saying, "What would. actually suit. Israel quite well. is just a sort of failed state in Iran. So, they're not that bothered about.

having a stable new regime there." This. particular analyst I was listening to, a. former negotiator on behalf of the. Israelis in the. Israel-Palestinian negotiations over the. years. I mean, he was saying Israel or. Prime Minister Netanyahu would be happy. if you had Iran turn into a country like. Iraq or Libya or Somalia, [music] where. it was really not functioning. It no. longer posed a threat. And it would also. absorb a lot of kind of.

effort and energy in from all those Arab. neighbors around it. And that would suit. the Israelis quite well. That's not what. the Israeli government is saying. That's. not their line. They just say, "We want. a new non-threatening regime in power in. Iran." But there's no sign that that is. going to happen anytime soon. Is Israel. on the same page as the US? I think. broadly, yes. I mean, uh certainly done. their very best over the course of this. short war to appear to be in complete.

lockstep on what their aims are uh. and strategy. I mean, Prime Minister. Netanyahu has said from the very start. of this war, and frankly, he's been. saying it for the best part of 40 years, that Iran uh poses an existential threat. to Israel. He's been saying for 40 years. that Iran is just a few steps, a few. months, a few years away from getting a. nuclear weapon, and he has been. determined to stop that. And this time,

he has gone in with greater force really. than ever before and with the full. backing of the United States. Uh. and certainly militarily, they do seem. to be ticking off a lot of their. objectives. Donald Trump, it seems, wants a short, low-cost war. Benjamin Netanyahu wants to destroy the. Iranian regime. It's a long-held dream. of his. Yeah, well, they've both said they want. to topple the regime in Iran. Donald.

Trump said that at the start of the war. Now, you're not going to do that by air. strikes alone. You would need boots on. the ground. I don't think we're going to. see that. So, they are hoping. that the Iranian people rise up and. topple their regime. And that is. something that both men said at the. beginning. of uh the conflict, that it was a sort. of once-in-a-generation. opportunity for Iranians to do that.

But, there is no sign of that happening. at the moment, and there are some. analysts who say, "Well, look, the war. has actually galvanized support around. the current regime uh in Iran." So, yes, Donald Trump is clearly signaling at the. moment, given the sort of chaos in the. financial markets we've had, the fact. that he's got these midterm elections. coming up in the United States in. November, the fact that basically he. came into office office pledging to get. America out of wars. He's now got.

involved in a massive one in the Middle. East. So, the things he's saying are. suggesting this war could end any day. now and I think frankly even if that's. not what the Israelis want, they will go. along with that because they want to. appear to be in complete lockstep with. the Americans and they can say, "Well, look, we've set Iran's nuclear program. back a long time. We've destroyed a lot. of Iran's ballistic missile capability.". But, you have to remember it was only a. year ago when we had that 12-day war.

between the United States, Israel, and. Iran and I remember President Trump. saying at the time that they had. obliterated Iran's nuclear program. A. few months later, we were back with. Prime Minister Netanyahu saying Iran. still remained a threat. They were real. rebuilding the nuclear program and a. year later, we were back at war. Even if the war in Iran ends, do you. think the war in Lebanon will continue. and could there be a major Israeli.

ground invasion? We've had ministers just today saying. that they think that uh. the Israeli military should push further. north and occupy much of southern. Lebanon. Now, that would require a lot. of troops to go in. We saw tanks massing. on the border when we were up there. They haven't gone in in the kind of. numbers, the kind of force that they. would need to to do that and I I'm not. sure. that is a goer really. Uh I'm not sure there would be the.

appetite for that amongst the. Israeli public, but for the moment the. Israelis are suggesting that they're. prepared to pushing further into Lebanon. and I do think while. uh Israel will be keen to go along with. the Americans in terms of what's. happening in Iran. I think when when. America says it's stopping in Iran, Israel will stop, too. I think in. Lebanon, it's different. You know, I. think there. Israel would be prepared to to sort of. go it alone with the with Hezbollah in.

Lebanon and just with the kind of. American tacit support, which it has. always had, of course. For President Trump, it's a big worry. that Americans might get more and more. disaffected because he was elected on a. pledge of no more forever wars. But. there are analysts who say that for. Benjamin Netanyahu, it actually suits. him for this war to go on longer because. he thinks it could help his hopes of. re-election. Right now, he's not that. popular despite the war itself being.

popular with a majority of Israelis. given the security failures that led to. the October the 7th attacks. You know, Israel is a very divided. country and there are many, many people. who have a lot of things that they are. unhappy with. Prime Minister Netanyahu about the war. in Gaza, how that was conducted, the. fact it took so long to get the hostages. out, the damage to the economy here, the. the sort of undermining of Israel's. judiciary. However, I think on the issue.

of Iran, on this and this war, I was. just looking at one of the most. respected polling organizations here and. it said 74%. of Jewish Israelis strongly support the. operation in Iran and another 14%, I. think it was, support it to some extent. So, you know, he does have broad. support. I have obviously over the past. 2 weeks been asking Israelis, do they. back Prime Minister Netanyahu? And they. do, you know, they agree with him, I.

think, that Iran. poses this existential threat threat and. would have to be dealt with at some. time. Now, if the war goes on longer, if. we saw see more Israeli really. casualties, if we see it beginning to. have an impact on the economy here in. Israel, if there's no sign of regime. change coming in Iran, well, the the. popularity for the war could shift, but. certainly I think in the short-term, Prime Minister Netanyahu will have got a. boat boost, and we are going to have. elections here in Israel. Some people.

think as soon as June, they've got to. happen, I think, by the autumn. So, you. know, in the short-term, wars usually give. Prime Minister Netanyahu a boost. Thanks, John. The BBC's John Donnison in. Jerusalem. If you like this episode, please. subscribe to us here on YouTube. If. there are any other stories you'd like. us to cover, leave a comment below. And. for more international news, you can. always download our global news podcast.