Iran Is Headed Toward Regime Collapse

By Nouriel Roubini – Project Syndicate

It was only matter of time before Israel struck Iran, which, starting on October 7, 2023, had unleashed Hamas, Hezbollah, Yemen’s Houthis, and Shia militias in Syria and Iraq against Israel. After Israel decimated these proxies and Iran lost strategic deterrence, Iran’s only option was to gain nuclear weapons, an unacceptable outcome for Israel and the West more broadly. Thus, Israel’s attack against Iran. And since some of Iran’s hardened nuclear facilities were robust enough to withstand Israeli weapons, it was clear that the US would intervene to destroy the nuclear facilities, despite the anti-interventionist sentiment of President Donald Trump’s base.

For now Israel’s attack has led even the anti-regime opposition to rally around the flag. Over time, however, a large majority of Iranians who despise a regime that has brought about the country’s economic and financial ruin – and now its geopolitical and military collapse – will rise against it and replace it with something else.