To protect its citizens, Israel must now deal with Hamas once and for all. The U.S. and Europe should provide all the support they can — including applying diplomatic pressure to prevent Hamas members from taking refuge in places like Turkey and Qatar.
However, behind Hamas lies a far greater, existential threat to Israel, a direct threat to the entire security of the West. That threat is Iran.
The Iranian regime, which supports Hamas and never misses an opportunity to call for “death to Israel” or “death to America,” continues its path toward nuclear weapons. While the threatening slogans in Tehran focus heavily on the US, Europe is the most vulnerable. It’s about Iranian missiles and drones falling, especially on Ukraine. Iran is the biggest terrorist proxy in the world today.
This led to an immediate rise in prices in Europe
Iran’s hostile actions are already having a direct impact on Europe. Russia has been attacking Ukraine for over a year using Iranian drones. Tehran is actively helping Moscow build its domestic drone production capacity. Thanks to this support, Russia can build up to 6,000. New attack drones in the summer of 2025. These devices pose a threat not only to Ukraine, but to every NATO country bordering Russia.
In addition, Europe faces a serious economic threat from Iran’s approach and its support for terrorist allies in the Middle East.
The October 7 attacks prompted Israel to halt production at the Tamar gas field in the Mediterranean Sea because it was within range of rockets fired from the Gaza Strip. This led to an immediate rise in prices in Europe.
Europe cannot ignore the Iranian regime’s radical ideological hostility to basic Western values - freedom of speech, religious tolerance and women’s rights.
Iran is moving closer to developing a nuclear weapon
Iran openly supported last year’s attack on author Salman Rushdie, who has been under an Iranian fatwa since 1989. It kidnaps and kills dissidents in Europe and America. Consequently, the Iranian regime – if allowed to continue – will have a chilling effect on our culture.
Atta Kenare / AFP
Demonstration in Tehran. 2023
Finally, the possession of nuclear weapons, combined with the advanced missile technology to deliver them, will turn up the heat and embolden the Iranian regime, threatening a nuclear Armageddon not only for Israel but also for Europe.
Iran is now closer than ever to developing a nuclear weapon. My colleague David Albright at the Institute for Science and International Security estimates that Iran could develop a primitive nuclear weapon in just six months, while the estimated time to build the infrastructure to mass-produce missile-deliverable nuclear weapons is two years.
There is only one option. “Stick Strategy”
By signing nuclear deals with Iran in 2015, the West tried to “manage” the crisis. However, the findings are based on the assumption that the Iranian regime is a rational actor. This mistake is now a victim. Iran’s support for Hamas’s barbaric attacks on Israel has disproved this assumption.
Negotiations and diplomatic efforts failed. By these methods, the West will not defeat the ideological fanaticism that inspires the mullahs in Tehran. There is only one way for Israel, Europe and America. A stick strategy to increase military, economic and diplomatic pressure on Iran.
Although the US and Israel are in a better position than Europe to deal with Iran militarily, European countries have considerable power to exert economic and diplomatic pressure on the country.
“Hard Set of Sanctions Against Iran”
The parties to the nuclear deal – France, Germany and the UK – have the ability to trigger sanctions. This could threaten Iran’s support for the Russian drone program. For their part, US lawmakers have now introduced what have been described as “the toughest sanctions against Iran proposed by Congress”.
Similar European action would help counter the threat from Iran and would be a welcome sign of transatlantic unity and solidarity with Israel at a time when our enemies are doing everything they can to divide the West.
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