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Israel's last war alongside an imperial power backfired. This one could, too

On 5 March 2026, the Israeli English-language outlet +972 Magazine published Israel's last war alongside an imperial power backfired. This one could, too, an opinion column by Meron Rapoport. He compares the new U.S.-Israel war on Iran to the 1956 Sinai campaign, when Israel fought beside Britain and France. An American family should care because he quotes a U.S. senator warning that this war could cost hundreds or thousands of American soldiers, and because he argues the war is being fought for a regional order Israel wants, not only for U.S. security.

Background for new readers: On 28 February 2026 the United States and Israel began a joint air war on Iran. The Pentagon calls its part Operation Epic Fury; Israel calls its part Operation Roaring Lion. It came eight months after a shorter war in June 2025, when US bombers hit Iran's nuclear sites at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. The question running through this section is whether the air war turns into American soldiers fighting on Iranian soil. This article is filed under Israeli Press on US Ground Troops; the full article index lists every article on this shelf.

Greater Israel, the long-held idea of Israeli control over land beyond the country's current borders, is not a phrase this column uses. Rapoport does write that Israel and the United States share an aim of toppling the Iranian government and setting a new order in the Middle East. He also recalls that David Ben-Gurion, at the end of the 1956 war, proclaimed a "Third Kingdom of Israel," and that Israel had to shelve that vision.

Evidence rating: MODERATE. This is a named commentator's reading in an Israeli English-language magazine. The line about American soldiers is Senator Chris Murphy's warning, as Rapoport quotes it.

What the article says​

Rapoport writes that on 29 October 1956 Israeli paratroopers landed at the Mitla Pass, and that a statement drafted by Moshe Dayan misdescribed the operation. He writes that the real aim, in Ben-Gurion's words just before the assault, was to "reorganize the Middle East" and bring down Egypt's Gamal Abdel Nasser. He says Israel won the desert fighting quickly, then had to withdraw under U.S. and Soviet pressure, and that Nasser emerged stronger.

He then says the Iran war is the first time since 1956 that Israel has fought openly beside a major Western power for regime change. He writes that the Israeli army called the joint assault a "preemptive strike," and that he considers that false, as he considers the 1956 announcement false. He writes that the stated reasons are Iran's nuclear and missile programs, its regional allies, and the Iranian people's oppression, but that the United States and Israel also want to topple the regime and reorder the region. He argues Israel could strike Iran without the United States, as in the June "12-Day War," and that the joint campaign is tied to those larger aims. He writes that Israel lacks the power to attempt that project alone.

On American soldiers, he quotes two critics. He writes that Tucker Carlson argued the war broke out because Israel wanted it, not for American national security. He then quotes Democratic Senator Chris Murphy.

the idea that Netanyahu can decide where America goes to war, risking the lives of hundreds and perhaps thousands of American soldiers, is chilling.

Those are Murphy's words, as Meron Rapoport quotes them in +972 Magazine on 5 March 2026. The column links to an Instagram clip. That clip was not opened for this page.

Rapoport also writes that Secretary of State Marco Rubio at first suggested the United States joined because Israel struck first, then walked the remarks back to match Trump, who said he might have forced Israel's hand. Rapoport writes that if the war fails and "dozens" of Americans are hurt, Israel could be blamed in the United States. He says Gulf states were pressing for a quick end even while angry at Iran. He says it was too early, less than a week into the war, to talk about the day after. A note at the end says a Hebrew version ran first in Local Call.

What other reporting adds​

The two remarks Rapoport describes, in other records. Rubio's early remark: Snopes quotes his 2 March statement "acknowledging that the U.S. 'knew that there was going to be an Israeli action.'" (Snopes, 30 April 2026; research capture: twitter/t13__v146.md). Trump's answer, as a Jewish Virtual Library page renders it: "President Trump rejected claims that Israel forced U.S. action, saying, 'I might have forced their hand.'" (Jewish Virtual Library; research capture: twitter/t13__v146.md).

A later US document. The same Snopes check quotes State Department legal adviser Reed Rubinstein, in an April 2026 opinion, saying the United States entered the war "at the request of and in the collective self-defense of its Israeli ally, as well as in the exercise of the United States' own inherent right of self-defense." Snopes rated the claim True (research capture: twitter/t13__v146.md). Netanyahu said in June: "ISRAEL DID NOT DRAG THE U.S. INTO A CONFLICT WITH IRAN." (C-SPAN, 3 June 2026; research capture: twitter/t13__v145.md).

Murphy's other warning. Around 13 March, after classified briefings, Murphy wrote: "The objective is not to destroy Iran's nuclear program — which is not surprising, because it cannot be destroyed from the air." (as posted by @SilentlySirs on X; research capture: twitter/t51__v601.md).

What it shows​

An Israeli magazine says out loud what this section documents. Rapoport writes that the United States and Israel share an aim of toppling Iran's government and reordering the region, and that Israel lacks the power to attempt that project alone. He quotes a US senator: "the idea that Netanyahu can decide where America goes to war, risking the lives of hundreds and perhaps thousands of American soldiers, is chilling."

In April the State Department's own legal opinion said the United States entered the war "at the request of" Israel. The American lives Murphy named are the ones the Pentagon's ground plans would put on Iranian soil. See Israeli Leaders on a Ground War and Pentagon Ground Plans 2026.

Check it yourself​

Status: Benjamin Netanyahu is alive. The column quotes critics who say he can steer America into war. It does not charge him with a crime.

Last Updated: 2026-09-26

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