CounterPunch Exclusives

CounterPunch Exclusives

Clouds of War in the Middle East

Israeli or American bombing of Tehran. Photo: Hossein Zohrevand, Tasnim News Agency. Creative Commons, Wikipedia.

The war of the Trump administration and Israel against Persia / Iran is bringing humanity ever closer to catastrophe. Both Israel and Iran are theocratic regimes designed to overcome each other, no matter the consequences. They replay the crusades of the dark ages. They have sacred books promising paradise, should they exterminate their enemy. But why is the United States in this deadly war? It knows Israel very well. It is its arms supplier. But should it also fight its wars? I don’t think Americans want such a state of subordination.

Second, the raging war in the Middle East is certain to exacerbate the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the management of nuclear weapons, other military plans, strategies and conventional weapons. That means the war Israel provoked against Iran becomes even more dangerous. Israel and the US have nuclear bombs. And Israel is determined to destroy Iran. In such paroxysms of hubris, logic, history and justice take a vacation. Passions rule. Thus this unnecessary, destabilizing and destructive war will delay world nuclear disarmament and peace for a very long time. In fact, the war against Iran may become global with unforeseeable calamities and other adverse consequences. Russia has already expressed support for Iran. And China probably has done the same thing. So, without knowing, we may be on the eve of World War III.

War in the Middle East

Trump campaigned for peace. Yet American and Israeli missiles are raining on Tehran. A US Airforce strike over the Iranian capital, Tehran, killed school girls. On March 8, 2026, Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) said that killing children is “unforgivable under any circumstances.” He is a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “But the fact that this was one of our first targeting decisions, that this mistake was made on the first day of war, I think speaks to the incompetence of our leadership at the Department of Defense.”

However, the US and Israel cannot win. Persia is a large country with a large population of 90 to 100 million people. But Persia’s greatest asset is that Persians know who they are. Their theocratic government may be divisive but, in general, Persians love their country. Persia / Iran is thousands of years old. The war against it violates international law and the Charter of the United Nations. It is also thoughtless. And it is unconscionable that a giant country like America is fighting Iran on behalf of a tiny state like Israel. This is no speculation. The Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, and the House Speaker, Mike Johnson, admitted that this is Israel’s war. Israel led the United States into war.

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