In today's Philadelphia Inquirer, Omar Fadhil of the indespensible blog Iraq the Model has what should be required reading for anyone interested in the much larger game that Iran is playing in the battle between Hezbollah and Israel. He argues we are witnessing the start of an Iranian-Israeli conflict (as opposed to previous Arab-Israeli wars) -- and that it has an apocalyptic theological component with implications that stretch throughout the region:
It's common wisdom to say that the war between Hezbollah and Israel is a regional struggle that also includes Iran and Syria, who have supported and supplied Hezbollah. What seems to be less understood is that this is the first war between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Israel, via Iran's proxy Hezbollah, and that its overarching purpose is to advance Iran's ambitions to export the Islamic revolution throughout the Middle East.
Thus, while religion has always played an important role in prior Arab-Israeli wars, this time it has moved to center stage. It is the theological aspect of this conflict that makes it so explosive and could lead to its expansion.
As an observer of the conflict from Iraq, I see the signs that Iran may be starting to launch the mullahs' version of an Armageddon, exploiting the religious beliefs of devout Shiites in the region. While this may sound more the stuff of prophecies than international relations, it is important to understand - especially in countries such as Lebanon and Iraq that have large Shiite populations.
Read the entire article here.
Comments