A grand deal with Iran might be out of reach, but Trump could strike a more modest agreement.
By MAX BOOT Washington Post
December 20, 2024
The fall of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad has dealt a devastating blow to Iran’s strategy of dominating the Middle East via proxies. The Assad regime was not only Iran’s most important ally but also a vital conduit to Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Iran’s most powerful proxy militia. It will be hard to rebuild Hezbollah after the mauling it has received from Israel if Syria doesn’t cooperate — and there is every reason to believe that the Sunni regime taking shape in Damascus will be hostile to Shiite rulers in Tehran. Meanwhile, in Gaza, another major Iranian-supported militia — Hamas — also lies in ruins.
Iran’s attempt to surround Israel with a “ring of fire” appears to be collapsing just as momentous political changes are afoot in both Tehran and Washington. A relatively moderate new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, took power in Iran in July following the death of his hard-line predecessor in a helicopter crash. Pezeshkian’s authority over national security policy is strictly limited — Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, still calls the shots — but his ascendance could indicate a more moderate approach toward the West.
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