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The events of October 7th created a new reality in the Middle East, and as the ripple effect continues to unfold, the international community is trying to adapt and prevent further escalation. Beyond the Gaza front, Hezbollah has intensified attacks in Northern Israel, Iraqi and Syrian terrorist groups have attacked American military bases more than 130 times, and the Houthis in Yemen have been regularly targeting ships passing by the Red Sea, effectively shutting down a major international trade route. While these attacks are geographically spread throughout the region and include several different nations, they all have one thing in common, Iran.
While Iran has a record of stirring the pot, they are getting bolder in their actions, both in scale and damage. Generally, Tehran employs its proxies to do its dirty work while maintaining plausible deniability. This past month, however, Iran changed their tune, directly attacking Erbil, Iraq, and Balochistan province, Pakistan. They claimed that the attack in Iraq was targeting Mossad headquarters (a claim that the Kurds denied), and the attack in Pakistan was a retaliation for the killing of Iranian security forces claimed by the Pakistani-backed Jaish al Adl group.
In Iraq at least four civilians were killed and six were injured; among the dead were Peshraw Dizayee, a Multimillionaire Kurdish businessman, and several members of his family. The attack in Pakistan cost the lives of two children, and several others were injured. Pakistan, which is a nuclear power, retaliated with military strikes inside Iran, claiming to have targeted Baloch militants.
To escalate the international tension even further, the Iran-backed militia group, Islamic Resistance in Iraq, carried out a drone strike on a US military base in Jordan, killing three U.S. troops. This strike was just the latest in a growing number of attacks on US military sites claimed by Iran-backed groups, putting the Biden administration in a bind in deciding how to react.
These escalations are even more worrying when we take into account that the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) found a small amount of 83% highly enriched uranium, a level just shy of weapons-grade. Iran’s renewed boldness, together with its potential nuclear capabilities, is a huge threat to international stability, not just the Middle East.
A 10-nation force is already hard at work countering Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, but that is only one arm of the octopus, and the question remains on what it will take for the international powers to come together and decide to go for its head?
On This Topic 👁️
Times Radio | Great short interview on what’s happened and what’s yet to come 🔜
WSJ | More on progress in Iran’s nuclear program 🚀
CNN | Deep dive into Iran-Pakistan skirmish 🥊