Last week, 29 Iranian soldiers were wounded in a terrorist attack on an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps military parade in the southwestern city of Ahvaz. Both Islamic State (IS) and a local separatist group claimed responsibility, but Tehran retaliated only against the former—launching long-range missiles from its own territory at IS positions in Syria. Ron Ben-Yishai argues that more is at stake here for the Islamic Republic than maintaining deterrence:

Iran . . . blamed Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the United States [for] the attack in Ahvaz. . . . It is . . . likely that by launching the long-range missiles the Revolutionary Guard . . . meant to send a threatening message to the West. Western countries—the United States, the European Union, and of course Israel—have demanded that Iran stop developing or using long-range ballistic missiles that can carry nuclear warheads. This is one of the main points of contention between Iran and the United States.

Therefore, Iran’s latest actions are a defiant move against the United States, whose special forces are fighting IS in the same region struck by Tehran’s missiles. By targeting Syria, Iran also sent a message to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and other Arab countries in the Persian Gulf—namely, that Iran is capable of launching missiles and causing harm even from its sovereign territory.

For some time, opponents of U.S support for Israel have been urging the White House to end the war in Gaza, or simply calling for a ceasefire. Douglas Feith and Lewis Libby consider what such a result would actually entail:

Ending the war immediately would allow Hamas to survive and retain military and governing power. Leaving it in the area containing the Sinai-Gaza smuggling routes would ensure that Hamas can rearm. This is why Hamas leaders now plead for a ceasefire. A ceasefire will provide some relief for Gazans today, but a prolonged ceasefire will preserve Hamas’s bloody oppression of Gaza and make future wars with Israel inevitable.

For most Gazans, even when there is no hot war, Hamas’s dictatorship is a nightmarish tyranny. Hamas rule features the torture and murder of regime opponents, official corruption, extremist indoctrination of children, and misery for the population in general. Hamas diverts foreign aid and other resources from proper uses; instead of improving life for the mass of the people, it uses the funds to fight against Palestinians and Israelis.

Moreover, a Hamas-affiliated website warned Gazans last month against cooperating with Israel in securing and delivering the truckloads of aid flowing into the Strip. It promised to deal with those who do with “an iron fist.” In other words, if Hamas remains in power, it will begin torturing, imprisoning, or murdering those it deems collaborators the moment the war ends. Thereafter, Hamas will begin planning its next attack on Israel:

Hamas’s goals are to overshadow the Palestinian Authority, win control of the West Bank, and establish Hamas leadership over the Palestinian revolution. Hamas’s ultimate aim is to spark a regional war to obliterate Israel and, as Hamas leaders steadfastly maintain, fulfill a Quranic vision of killing all Jews.

Hamas planned for corpses of Palestinian babies and mothers to serve as the mainspring of its October 7 war plan. Hamas calculated it could survive a war against a superior Israeli force and energize enemies of Israel around the world. The key to both aims was arranging for grievous Palestinian civilian losses. . . . That element of Hamas’s war plan is working impressively.