Israel-US Partnership Redefines Modern Coalition Warfare

Most wars involve coalitions, but some partners remain barely visible or entirely invisible. The current Iran war exemplifies this dynamic. While Western commentary focuses on the United States and Donald Trump's decision to launch the conflict, in actual operations, Israel has emerged not as a junior partner but as a near-equal ally.

According to an Israeli air force spokesperson, 200 Israeli jets struck more than 500 targets on the first day alone—excluding drone attacks or special operations. U.S. Central Command hasn't released its first-day strike numbers, but they're likely comparable, conducted from a wider variety of platforms including naval assets.

A Remarkable Scale of Allied Effort

This represents an extraordinary level of coalition warfare. During the Gulf War, when Britain was still a major power, it deployed barely 60 strike aircraft in a much larger American air campaign. Today, however, the Israeli air force operates with cutting-edge American aircraft and munitions at a scale no U.S. European ally could match in this theater.

This transformation was enabled by the first Trump administration's decision to transfer Israel from European Command to Central Command after 40 years—a bureaucratic shift with profound operational implications. The American military's recognition of Israel as a first-class fighting force capable of peer-level operations has fundamentally altered the partnership dynamic.

The anti-Iran coalition extends far beyond the U.S.-Israel axis. Reports suggest that Saudi Arabia, publicly standoffish, privately urged Trump to attack Iran. By striking Arab neighbors—Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan, and even northern Iraq's Irbil—Iran has paradoxically expanded the coalition fighting against it.

The Shadow War Dimension

Behind the visible air campaign lies another dimension where Israelis, preparing for decades, operate as equal partners with the United States. This shadow war encompasses intelligence gathering, assassination, covert action, and special operations.

The killing of Iran's supreme leader likely resulted from CIA or Israeli intelligence assessments—or more probably, a cooperative venture. Other senior Iranian officials have been eliminated, including the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the defense minister. More operations are undoubtedly underway, including outreach to potential coup leaders or popular movement organizers.

Regime Change as the End Game

Unlike previous campaigns with limited objectives—damaging air defenses, setting back nuclear programs, or mere humiliation—this operation clearly aims for regime change. This can only happen through internal putsch or organized popular uprising, requiring identification of viable conspirators and potentially smuggling weapons, explosives, and communications equipment to support insurgents.

Iran hasn't remained passive. During the 2025 12-day war, Iranians initially appeared paralyzed, firing roughly 50 missiles only 18 hours after initial strikes. Throughout that conflict, they launched more than 500 ballistic missiles and twice as many drones.

In current fighting, Iran has accelerated its response pace, initially firing 200 missiles at Israel and continuing attacks that hit targets including a bomb shelter in Beit Shemesh, the U.S. naval base in Bahrain, a luxury hotel in Dubai, and bases in other countries.

Lessons for Contemporary Conflict

The Middle East continues offering lessons about modern warfare: the routinization of leadership assassination as an operational tool, the consumption of advanced munitions even against weaker enemies, and the increased power of clandestine warfare and cyberattacks integrated into conventional operations.

These measures' success won't guarantee the deeply institutionalized Iranian regime's end or eliminate possibilities of metastasizing violence or painful revenge acts from the Islamic Republic.