Over the past 48 hours, Benjamin Netanyahu’s battle with Iran has escalated into a spectacle of missiles, brinkmanship, and personal drama—fitting for a leader whose political career thrives on crisis. As Iranian missiles rained down on Israel, Netanyahu made global headlines by postponing his son’s wedding—a personal touch leveraged to signal “sacrifice” while the country’s air defenses lit up the sky.
But this week’s pyrotechnics are just the latest chapter in Netanyahu’s decades-long campaign to position himself as the indispensable strongman of Israel. The aims are clear: destroy Iran’s nuclear program, and if possible, topple the ayatollahs themselves. International commentary points out the delusion and risk—neither goal is even remotely achievable without dragging the entire region into chaos.
On Israeli television, Netanyahu promised to “hit every site belonging to the ayatollah regime,” a line echoed and amplified in sympathetic media. Meanwhile, hawkish columnists frame his actions as a test of Iranian resolve, suggesting that weakness in Tehran spells vindication for Israel’s hard line. Yet, reports from France24 note that Netanyahu’s call for popular Iranian revolt barely registered—either in the streets of Tehran or in the exhausted imaginations of the international commentariat.
What’s left is the choreography of war and the drama of political survival. As one analysis put it, the war with Iran is now “securing” Netanyahu’s place at the top—at least for the moment. Each new escalation is framed as a blow for history, not just policy. As Israeli officials warn that “attacks on Iran are nothing compared with what is coming”, the world is left to watch the drama—wondering if this is deterrence or just another episode in Netanyahu’s lifelong gamble for legacy.
Because in Israel’s new era of permanent emergency, the line between existential threat and political theatre is vanishing fast, and Benjamin Netanyahu is determined to make sure his name stays above the title—no matter what it costs.