Secretary of State Antony Blinken is spending part of this week in the Middle East, where he’s scheduled to meet with Israeli, Palestinian and Egyptian officials to reduce the roiling violence in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. But you can bet that Blinken will also take this opportunity to refocus attention on another issue that is simmering to a near boiling point: Iran and its ongoing nuclear program.
By its own actions, Israel has forced the subject on the agenda. Last weekend, three drones struck an Iranian Ministry of Defense facility in the city of Isfahan that was reportedly connected to Tehran’s missile program. While nobody claimed credit for the strike, a U.S. official stated that Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency was likely responsible. While Israeli officials are notoriously tight-lipped for operational security reasons, it certainly wouldn’t be surprising if the Israelis planned and executed the attack. Israel, after all, has the motive and operational acumen to conduct an operation like this, given its heightened concern over Tehran’s weapons programs.
Israel also has a successful history of sabotaging Iranian military programs. The Israeli government has been especially forceful over the last several years, often using its impressive network of operatives and agents to blow up facilities crucial to Iran’s military and take out individuals crucial to staffing it.
