Who is with Iran and who backs Israel as conflict widens
As the Israel-Iran conflict snowballs, a look at who would actually stand with Israel and Iran, respectively, if tensions further escalate.
The Israel-Iran conflict snowballed into a bigger one on Sunday after the United States got its military directly involved, striking three key nuclear sites in Iran. As Israel heaped praise on US President Donald Trump for the operation, Iran vowed intensified attacks against Israel.
While the strikes did spark global responses, with several world leaders calling for restraint, it is important who note who would actually stand with Israel and Iran, respectively, if the regional conflict further widens. Follow Israel-Iran conflict live updates.
Setbacks to Iran's axis of resistance
Iran has historically banked on a network of allied paramilitary groups, preventing direct attacks on it from Israel and the US. Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) in Iraq and the Houthi militants in Yemen together form what is known as the 'axis of resistance'.
However, over the years, Israel has dealt significant blows to these non-state allies of Iran. While Hamas's position has weakened immensely since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in 2023, Hezbollah has also been effectively neutralised after months of attacks by Israel.
Besides, Iran also backed some militias in Syria but they were expelled after Bashar al-Assad's ouster and the fall of his regime.
However, Iran maintains strong influence in Iraq, with an estimated 200,000 PMF fighters, and a similarly sized contingent of the Houthis in Yemen.
Iran's state allies
Apart from the 'axis of resistance', Iran has also long enjoyed support from its key global allies -- Russia and China. After the US strikes on key nuclear facilities in Iran on Sunday, China slammed the move, calling it “a dangerous turning point.”
Russia also accused the US of gambling "with the safety and well being of humanity as a whole", reported news agency AP.
"The US has opened a Pandora’s box” and "no one knows what new catastrophes and suffering it will bring", said Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia.
However, many analysts believe Russia and China are unlikely to get involved directly. While Russia wouldn't want to endanger its improving ties with the Trump administration, China also has little interest in getting directly involved in Middle Eastern conflicts.
Even when the Assad regime collapsed in Syria, Russia stayed on the sidelines despite being one of the closest allies of the region.
Who is with Israel?
Ever since the conflict began on June 13 with Israel's strikes on nuclear establishments in Iran, the US has extended an unequivocal support to its ally.
Not just the US, all the Group of Seven (G7) nations had expressed support for Israel in a statement, labelling Iran as a source of instability in the Middle East. The G7 nations are -- Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the US.
"We affirm that Israel has a right to defend itself. We reiterate our support for the security of Israel," G7 leaders said in the statement, days before the US military action in Iran.
The latest Israel-Iran conflict stems from Tehran's fight against Iran developing nuclear weapons. However, Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons and has said it has the right to develop nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.
(With inputs from PTI, Reuters)
