The Islamic Republic is no longer hiding behind slogans of resistance or claims of self-defense. With its direct attacks on its Gulf neighbours, the regime has now revealed its true nature, an aggressive resentful state that no longer respects borders diplomacy or civilian life.
Iran’s attacks have targeted Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Jordan states that for decades pursued dialogue restraint and de-escalation with Tehran despite repeated provocations.
These attacks are not acts of self-defense. They involve missiles and drones launched without restraint, targeting civilian areas, economic infrastructure and national interests. This escalation comes despite Saudi Arabia and the UAE making clear early on that their airspace would not be used for attacks against Iran. It comes despite Qatar and Oman maintaining balanced relations and consistently advocating diplomatic solutions. It even comes after Saudi Arabia restored diplomatic ties with Iran in 2023 ending years of severed relations in the hope of regional stability. Iran has responded not with restraint but with missiles.
Beyond military calculations, Iran’s aggression is driven by deep resentment. Resentment toward the progress, stability, safety and prosperity achieved by Gulf societies while the Islamic Republic itself has dragged its people backwards. While the Gulf has built secure cities, growing economies, and opportunities for its youth, Iran has delivered isolation, economic collapse, and repression. The Gulf today is an economic powerhouse and a hub of development and global engagement, while Iran’s economy continues to spiral under corruption, sanctions, and mismanagement. This contrast fuels the regime’s hostility. It is not strength that drives Tehran’s actions, but anger at what it failed to achieve and fear of what its own people see across the water. The open hatred Iranians express toward their rulers, both inside the country and in exile, exposes a regime that has lost legitimacy at home and lashes out abroad in frustration.
The Collapse of Iran’s Narrative
For forty-eight years the Islamic Republic attacked its Gulf neighbours through rhetoric militias and proxy wars. Today it has crossed a dangerous threshold by attacking them directly. For decades Tehran claimed that Israel was the sole enemy and that it was the defender of Muslim and Palestinian rights. Yet today it is attacking Muslim countries, Muslim cities and Muslim civilians including those who never sought confrontation and who invested in peace.
In the first day of the conflict the Iranian government confirmed the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a man widely viewed across the Arab world as responsible for the devastation of Syria, Lebanon, Yemen and Iraq and for orchestrating modern terrorism since assuming leadership in 1989 following the death of Khomeini. Whether one focuses on the military dimension or the political symbolism the reaction across Iran and among Iranian communities abroad was telling. Celebration scenes of relief and open expressions of hope reflected the depth of repression lived under the rule of the Ayatollahs.
Khamenei was not a Shia religious authority. He was the leader of a hostile state that weaponised sectarian identity to manipulate societies, destabilise nations and silence dissent. As US President Donald Trump stated following the announcement of Khamenei’s death, “Seize the moment and take back your country.” His words reflect what millions of Iranians have long demanded and what the regime spent decades suppressing.
Bahrain and the Gulf
For decades GCC states prepared for Iranian aggression, military, political and ideological. Bahrain’s defence forces have performed with professionalism, successfully intercepting Iranian drones and missiles aimed at civilian and strategic locations. In Bahrain residential buildings, a hotel, Mina Salman Port and areas near Juffair were targeted. One casualty has been officially announced so far. These attacks underline the Islamic Republic’s disregard for civilian life and international norms.
At the same time Iran’s supporters in Bahrain have once again exposed themselves. Groups such as Al Wefaq Islamic Society which since 2011 attempted to portray themselves as national and independent failed to issue any condemnation of attacks on Bahraini territory. A brief review of their social media activity since the start of the war reveals a disturbing absence of national loyalty, empathy for civilians or respect for the country they claim to represent.
Small groups attempting to mobilise anti-America protests further expose the contradiction at the heart of pro-Iran activism. These are the same actors who during crises including in 2011 were the first to seek Western and American intervention. Today they threaten Bahraini and allied interests while pretending to act in the name of justice.
These protests do not represent Bahrain. They remain limited, isolated and socially marginal drowned out by a society that understands the stakes and stands firmly behind national unity.
Iran’s Strategy Is Failing
The Islamic Republic is attempting to manufacture chaos hoping that regional instability will pressure Gulf states into pressuring the United States buying the regime time and shielding it from collapse. It is also attempting to distract Israel through Hezbollah in Lebanon. But these tactics are no longer working. Iran’s familiar playbook of denial, proxies and intimidation has failed. Its credibility is exhausted. Its neighbours who pursued diplomacy for nearly five decades have now been attacked directly.
The Gulf stands united not because its members are identical but because they understand that collective security is the foundation of survival. This unity remains the greatest success of the Gulf Cooperation Council. Iran has shown its true colours. It cannot be trusted. It cannot intimidate the region into silence. And it cannot indefinitely sustain a confrontation it helped ignite.
History will remember this moment not as Iran’s triumph but as the moment its mask finally fell.