You know those “Dual Control” cars that driving instructors sometimes use? Well, imagine one of those as a 5-seater, with accelerators and brake pedals for everyone, but with Iran behind the steering wheel. That’s pretty much Tehran’s control over its foreign policy aims via its multiple proxy militia in the Middle East.
Tehran can point the vehicle in the direction it wants to go, but, with four other would-be drivers accelerating and braking at different times, there’s always a danger it steers off course and crashes. Into Israel.
That’s one of several dilemmas Iran faces as it continues to ask itself an important question; “How do we punish the Israelis for killing Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran without them coming back again and punching us very hard in the face?”. Or words to that effect.
