Comments
WAR - One thing is certain: the problem–enigma of the mullahs has confounded every American president since 1979. Donald Trump, the ‘beautiful hurricane’, saw in it an opportunity to act, especially after missing the Nobel Prize he so openly coveted. But will he move toward wide war to engineer regime change? He said so, but that remains the central question.
According to Washington, Iran has committed three critical mistakes and America is not a country that forgives. In this case, forgiveness is even less likely because of Israel, which is not merely an ally but a nation that shapes decisions at the White House more than any other. Iran became a regional power, but Khamenei was –in Trump’s words– “one of the most evil people in history.”
America wants to avoid another Iraq. A ground invasion like the one in 2003 would bring human losses that the current leadership could not easily justify to the American people. Trump himself came to power in 2016 partly as a reaction to that war. Iran is a geographically cohesive country with strategic depth, armed with thousands of missiles and drones. Personally, it seems nearly impossible for the regime to collapse without American forces on the ground.
Israel is a small country with enormous security demands. The Jewish people carry a deep fixation on their state’s survival as their only refuge. They do not forget what happened in Europe from 1933 to 1945. Hezbollah, the Houthis, Hamas, and other Islamic organizations maintain open channels with Tehran and receive financial backing from it. Which state do these organizations threaten? The attacks of October 7, 2023, and Israel’s swift response made the answer painfully clear.
Two years later, in June 2025, Israel and Iran waged a twelve-day war, fought primarily in the air — Israeli bombardments against Iranian ballistic missile strikes and suicide drones. As a rule, whoever threatens Israel eventually comes under attack. Some view Benjamin Netanyahu as fixated on Iran.
Iran’s mistakes are threefold. First, its theocratic regime openly supports the erasure of Israel — a hatred that is unjust, racist, and inhumane. This is not something Israel’s political or military leadership can afford to ignore. ‘Israel First’ is the doctrine of a nation that respects itself.
Second, Iran continues to enrich uranium, spending vast sums under the guise of peaceful purposes while pursuing nuclear weapons. As Trump emphasized in his recent State of the Nation address: “never allow the world’s number one sponsor of terror to have a nuclear weapon.”
Third, Iran maintains an extensive missile program. During the twelve-day war, many of these missiles were launched against Israel, with several breaching the Iron Dome. Iran is developing ballistic missiles capable of reaching Israel within minutes and believes it has an inalienable right to do so.
Israel and America see themselves as justified in destroying any Iranian capability to produce nuclear weapons. They also point to Tehran’s brutal repression of citizens protesting for better economic conditions and greater freedoms. While Iran lacks organized opposition, the regime has, in effect, sealed its own fate. And so, weapons may well speak where diplomacy fails. The result has been deadly: Khamenei and many Iranian officials have already been killed.
When the regime in Iran eventually changes –mere destabilization alone would serve no purpose– a new day could dawn in the long-suffering Middle East. What matters is that neighboring peoples find a way to coexist. Ideally, they will look back and say: neither Trump, nor Khamenei’s successor, nor Netanyahu, but independent states, respecting one another, pursuing peace and social justice.
(Dimitris Eleas is a political scientist, writer and independent researcher living in New York. His e-mail is: [email protected].)
