After 12 days of war between Israel and Iran, a ceasefire has brought a sense of cautious relief to the region.

Even after almost 21 months of war in Gaza and its spillover into neighbouring countries, the latest escalation set a dangerous precedent that could provoke more cycles of warfare and destabilise the Middle East.

The question is how did we reach this boiling point? The answer goes back decades, to a time even before the 1979 revolution in Iran when the country enjoyed a more co-operative relationship with Israel under the shah.

At the same time the region was going through a transformative period against the backdrop of the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and rising anti-imperialist sentiments. As events unfolded and political leaderships changed over time, so did the strategic interests that Israel shared with Iran.

In this episode of Beyond the Headlines, host Nada AlTaher dives into the context that soured the relationship between the two countries, and the more recent events that brought about the air war.

She is joined by The National's assistant foreign editor Aveen Karim, senior fellow at UCLA Burkle Centre for International Relations Dalia Dassa Kaye, and independent Israeli analyst Ori Goldberg.

We want to hear from you! Help us improve our podcasts by taking our two-minute listener survey. Click here.

248: Are the Suns Finished? | Naz Reid