Though the war has stalemated, the indirect talks between Iran and the USA have not collapsed – threatening pasturing, pause in exchange of messages, hot and cold statements, and boasts of annihilation of a civilization notwithstanding. Iran is economically hard pressed, the USA feels the shortage of arms and ammunition, Israel advances its plan to secure its flanks from Hezbollah, and turn the Arab world into a divided and weak bloc of nations. Israel has had no challenge from any Arab country since its last war of 1973. 

The USA policy to undermine the nationalist autocrats to secure Israel and the Gulf monarchies was successful. The present Middle East with no strong country on the scene would have gone under the security umbrella of Israel signing the Abraham Accords had the latter not been arrogantly over-ambitious seeking to establish itself as the master of the region. Among all the countries in the Middle East, only Iran stood out as the resisting block.    

Two important events exposed the limits of the USA political and strategic prevalence in the Middle East. The overkill in Gaza by Israel devastating indiscriminately entire neighborhoods, schools, hospital, improvised camps of the internally displaced persons. The entire Palestinian population, and the entire well-built city were the target of ruthless bombardment to shock and disgust of the world. The invasion of Iran at the behest of Israel while with it were in progress on a question of utmost importance to the USA and Israel. These two events were bound to have seismic changes in the Middle East much beyond the estimations of invaders. 

Maybe, the USA leadership was trapped by the rosy assessment of the direction of the war by Israeli strategic leaders. The Western and Arab world were watching the destruction and killings in Gaza, and the intensive on Iran. The war in the Middle East has left the world........

© The Friday Times