Debunking Nine Myths of the Israel-Iran War

If you are using social media, you have likely encountered many false narratives surrounding the Israel-Iran war. Here is what you need to know:

Myth 1: Israel is trying to drag America into a war where its soldiers will die

Reality: Israel does not desire a protracted action and seeks no ground invasion. At most, it would ask America to give it a bunker-buster bomb to hit the Fordow nuclear facility, which is the best protected and underground nuclear facility in Iran. America could also choose to bomb Fordow itself — not at Israel’s behest. Israel has already attacked the Natanz nuclear facility.

Myth 2: Israel launched this war due to its aggressive and violent nature

Reality: Iran has been attacking Israel for almost 40 years, and has been using its proxies of Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, and others in order to create a ring of fire around Israel. Iran was responsible for the Oct. 7 massacre through its support of Hamas, as well as every Hezbollah atrocity against Israel. And it was Iran itself that started the direct war between the two countries. In April, Iran launched 300 projectiles, including 170 drones and 120 ballistic missiles at Israel. Last October, it launched 200 ballistic missiles.

Myth 3: The Iranian people are against Israel

Reality: The majority of the Iranian population hates the repressive regime in Iran. In September 2022, 22 year-old Mahsa Amini died after being arrested by Iran’s morality police for not wearing a hijab. Witnesses reported she was beaten in custody. Protests ensued, and human rights groups reported that Iran’s security forces killed more than 400 protesters. These follow many protests and uprising in the past against the mullahs.

Iranian civilians obviously don’t want to be hit by Israeli fire, but Israel has chiefly targeted military locations. If a certain number of Iranian civilians were killed, that attitude could potentially change.

Myth 4: Prime Minister Netanyahu has been saying Iran would have nuclear weapons for many years, so he cannot be trusted on this point

Reality: The first part is true, as Iran has been working on its nuclear program for decades. It has lied, and been caught lying, numerous times in the past. The only reason to enrich uranium past 60 percent is for military purposes.

In addition, things on the ground have changed. Iran has seen its proxies weakened and has become more desperate. Iran never before fired hundreds of missiles at Israel, as it did in 2024 and 2025, and may have been surprised at Israel’s ease in repelling the attack, and also disabling Iran’s air defenses. President Trump has also confirmed that he believes Iran was truly coming close to building a nuclear weapon.

Myth 5: Iran and President Trump were about to make a deal, so Israel sabotaged it by attacking the Islamic Republic

Reality: President Trump gave Iran 60 days to negotiate, and Trump has now said the Iranians didn’t negotiate seriously or in good faith. That’s why he allowed the Israeli attack to go forward on day 61.

Myth 6: Because some Iranian missiles got through Israel’s defense systems, those systems are a failure

Reality: No matter how advanced any system of intercepting projectiles is, there is no such thing as 100 percent accuracy in war. Drones, which are slow and take many hours to get to Israel are easier to shoot down. Ballistic missiles fired from Iran can reach Israel in 10-15 minutes, and pack a good amount of explosives that can do tremendous damage, even wiping out a block.

Myth 7: This is only about Iran’s nuclear program

Reality:Iran’s ballistic missiles also pose a huge threat, as we have seen in recent days, and Israeli attacks have knocked out some of the rocket launchers. Israeli officials report that Iran wanted to expand its ballistic missile arsenal from 2,000 to 8,000.

Myth 8: Israel’s attack certainly brings the world closer to World War III

Reality: While anything is possible, it does not appear that Russia and China would get involved. Hezbollah has stated it will not get involved.

Myth 9: Israel is believed to have a nuclear bomb, so it’s only fair that Iran has one as well

Reality: Iran has threatened to wipe Israel off the map. Israel has never threatened the same to Iran. Israel does not foment terrorism around the world, and Israel would not use a nuclear weapon to stop Western states from confronting its use of terrorism. That’s why countries like Germany and France say Iran cannot possess a nuclear weapon, but Israel can. Iran getting a nuclear weapon could also trigger a nuclear arms race with countries like Saudi Arabia.

The author is a writer based in New York.

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