Netanyahu promises Iran regime change: Can Israel topple Tehran government?
Analysts say Israel can batter Iran’s military but lacks a credible path to toppling Tehran’s government without a ground campaign — and US backing for another offensive remains uncertain.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declared that overthrowing Iran’s government remains Israel’s “primary objective” — but analysts say that while Israel can inflict serious damage on Iran, it lacks a credible path to regime change from the air alone.
Netanyahu made the remarks after speaking with US President Donald Trump on Sunday and receiving a visit from Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, according to Al Jazeera. He offered no indication, however, that Washington had agreed to join another offensive against Iran, let alone a campaign aimed at toppling Tehran’s leadership.
Israel’s firepower is not in doubt. Urban Coningham, a research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, told Al Jazeera that its weapons stockpiles and aerial refuelling capability give it a substantial advantage: “Israel could again establish air superiority and strike Iranian targets.” But air strikes alone are unlikely to achieve regime change, analysts said, while a ground invasion would demand a far greater military commitment.
Netanyahu himself acknowledged the limits of airpower in March, saying: “You can’t do it only from the air… There has to be a ground component, as well.” Caglar Kurc, an assistant professor at Abdullah Gul University in Turkiye, said bombing could weaken Iran’s military but “cannot fully destroy offensive capabilities” — and overthrowing the government would require troops on the ground for years.
US participation looks uncertain. The Financial Times reported this week that an Israeli proposal for renewed strikes had failed to secure Trump’s approval, with the president under pressure to avoid escalation before the US midterm elections. Without Washington, Coningham said, Israel would lack capabilities such as the 30,000-pound GBU-57 bunker-busting bombs that US B-2 bombers dropped on Iran’s Fordow and Natanz facilities in June 2025.
“You cannot change a regime unless you are prepared to deploy troops and stay in the country for some years,” Kurc added. “Israel cannot control Iran.”
Source: Al Jazeera English — TrendWire reports stories in its own words; facts should be confirmed against the original source.