Some “America First” influencers argue—explicitly or implicitly—that Israel’s existence is the root cause of Middle Eastern instability and even threats to the US, a claim that collapses under history, facts, and strategic reality.
For a growing corner of the American right, attacking Israel has become a defining feature of a new “America First” identity. The argument varies in tone but not in substance: if Israel were not in the picture, the Middle East would calm down, jihadist violence would fade, and America would no longer be a target. It is an appealingly simple story—and a deeply misleading one.
The Middle East did not become violent because Israel exists. Sectarian conflict, imperial ambition, religious extremism, and regional power struggles long predate the modern Jewish state. Iran’s drive for regional dominance has nothing to do with Israeli settlements. Sunni–Shia bloodshed does not hinge on Jerusalem. Jihadist movements openly declare their goal as global Islamic rule, not coexistence with or without Israel.
Yet Israel is repeatedly framed as the “provocation,” rather than as a frontline state confronting the same Islamist forces that threaten Western democracies.
