Black warrant

Israel's attack on Iran is not just about the nuclear issue, but also about dismantling Tehran's military and political leadership

- BY A.K. RAMAKRISHNAN

WHEN ALI SHAMKHANI, the head of Iran's negotiating team in the nuclear talks with the United States, was killed along with military leaders, nuclear scientists and civilians in the first set of Israeli missile strikes in Iran, we knew that the diplomatic path to a negotiated settlement of the nuclear issue had also been killed by Israel. President Donald Trump said “the persons I was dealing with are dead”. Iran abandoned the nuclear talks in Oman once the Israeli attacks intensified and it began counterattacks. The Israeli political leadership, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in particular, wanted a direct military confrontation with Iran and knew very well that Trump would ultimately come around.

Trump was consulted by Israel before launching the air campaign against Iran, and it has become clear that he gave the nod. Netanyahu's genocidal military campaign in Gaza was dragging on without any foreseeable end. War, to him, had become a means of conducting everyday politics. He did not want Iran to undertake any level of nuclear enrichment, nor did he entertain any possibility of a negotiated settlement between the US and Iran. For Netanyahu, the military option against Iran was not just about the nuclear issue but also about dismantling Iran's military and political leadership. The regime change agenda with respect to Iran was stressed by him in the initial statements following the missile attacks. This is where, strategically, no end point seems to be in sight. To achieve any of these objectives, the involvement of the US becomes necessary.