A few days ago, Israel launched attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities. This was known about ahead of time - there were more than a few whispers that Israel was likely to strike Iranian military targets, and particularly nuclear facilities. But then it happened and was no longer merely the domain of rumor.
Iranian officials declared that this was an act of war, which is kind of hard to argue with.
So is this a new war between the two countries? And if so, how likely is it that it could spark a wider war, with more countries getting involved?
These attacks occurred with American officials aware of it. Netanyahu stated that Americans had been consulted prior to these military strikes. And while President Trump emphasized that the United States was not involved with these strikes, we all know that Israel conducted these strikes with military technology obtained from the United States. It is no secret at this point that Israel's biggest and most unconditional supporter is the United States.
That means that like with what many people - with some measure of credibility - describe as the genocide that has occurred in Palestinian occupied lands, many people the world over will likely see this as the United States being compliant and cooperative, at the very least, if not outright supportive of these military actions by Israel.
We also know that this is a volatile region. The Middle East feels like the modern, 21st century powder keg that the Balkans used to be in the early decades of the 20th century. It seems that every time a war breaks out in the region, there are people working around the clock to try and make sure that these wars do no escalate - as they so clearly might - into a wider war. Frankly, it is not impossible that a war in this region could even spark World War III.
If such a war does break out in the region, it is difficult, if not even almost impossible, to think that Israel somehow would not be involved. After all, Israel is surrounded by countries which are clearly hostile to it.
Why, then, is Israel seemingly so anxious to start a wider war? Why is it waging a war against Palestinians in the occupied territory and now also seemingly starting a war with a fairly powerful nation in the region, simultaneously? It feels like the security of Israel has never been as seriously challenged as it is now. So how is it that Israelis seem so comfortable supporting a man like Netanyahu, a hardliner who has been in and out of office, and almost dominated Israeli politics, now for something like two decades? Neither peace nor real victory has been achieved by him, yet Israelis collectively seem intent on keeping him in power.
Sorry, I just don't get it.
This was the major story in recent days, even largely overshadowing the anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles and elsewhere here in the United States, which had been dominating headlines and news stories for days prior to these attacks. And it feels like all of this is happening now for a reason.
Is this the beginning of something that might actually lead to that to this point mythical World War III? Or is this another red herring, like the United States killing an Iranian general, or the Indian-Pakistani conflict which briefly flared up a few weeks ago, and then which simply seemed to disappear as quickly as it came?
One more question: how many times can we keep playing chicken with situations like these, flirting with the outbreak of a massive war - again, World War III - and hope to continue to win the gamble that it does not in fact break out? Because to me, it feels like we are playing with fire, quite literally.
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