Bombs Can Weaken Iran’s Regime. They Can’t Replace It.

The Israeli and US joint military operation is unlikely to achieve regime change by air campaign alone. The more realistic goal would be to weaken and impose changes on the existing power structure. They just won’t be the kind of changes most Iranians are looking for, at least in the near term. Announcing the beginning of major combat operations, Trump stated: “To the great, proud people of Iran, I say tonight that the hour of your freedom is at hand...When we are finished, take over your government. It will be yours to take.” But his Cabinet members have hedged on regime change as a goal. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth insisted, “This is not a so-called regime-change war,” and Secretary of State Marco Rubio claimed the destruction of Iran’s ballistic missile program is the primary mission, adding, “We hope that the Iranian people can overthrow this government.” But hope is not a strategy, and while Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and other senior Iranian officials have been killed, the regime has shown no signs of falling apart, and the Iranian opposition has not yet coalesced into a viable alternative leadership...

Read the full article on the Boston Globe website.