Friday night’s US airstrikes against Iran-backed militias in Syria and Iraq marked a new high tide in the violence spreading across the region since the start of the Gaza war.
The Biden administration, however, is now seeking to show it has more in its Middle East policy toolkit than precision-guided bombs. While it was planning the midnight sorties in retaliation for an attack last Sunday on a US base in Jordan, the White House has also been sending signals that it will not let the worsening crisis unfolding in the Middle East go to waste and that it is developing a plan to use the turmoil as an opportunity to transform the region.
