Iran’s leaders are discovering they’re on their own against the U.S. and Israel, without the network of proxies and allies that allowed them to project power in the Middle East and beyond.
As the Islamic Republic confronts its most perilous moment in decades following the bombing of its nuclear facilities ordered by U.S. President Donald Trump, Russia and China are sitting on the sidelines and offering only rhetorical support. Militia groups Iran has armed and funded for years are refusing or unable to enter the fight in support of their patron.
After decades of being stuck in a game of fragile detente, the entire geopolitical order of the Middle East is being redone. The Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel was only the beginning. It led to multiple conflicts and tested decadeslong alliances. It offered Trump, on his return to power this year, a chance to do what no president before him had dared by attacking Iran so aggressively and directly.
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