What is Iran's endgame?

Tehran seeks to supplant US and Saudi Arabia as dominant power in Middle East while forcing Israel to end Gaza war

Iranian protesters are carrying a portrait of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and a Yemeni flag as they burn an Israeli flag during an anti-U.S. and anti-British protest in front of the British embassy in Tehran
An Israeli flag is burned during an anti-US and Britain protest outside the British embassy in Tehran on 12 January
(Image credit: Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

A deadly drone attack on a US military base in Jordan has threatened to ignite the tinderbox of tensions in the Middle East and provoke direct confrontation between the US and Iran. 

Rishi Sunak has urged Iran to "de-escalate" after a missile attack on the Tower 22 outpost killed three US troops and injured 34 others. Joe Biden blamed "radical Iran-backed militant groups operating in Syria and Iraq" for the "despicable" attack and promised to retaliate.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Harriet Marsden is a writer for The Week, mostly covering UK and global news and politics. Before joining the site, she was a freelance journalist for seven years, specialising in social affairs, gender equality and culture. She worked for The Guardian, The Times and The Independent, and regularly contributed articles to The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, The New Statesman, Tortoise Media and Metro, as well as appearing on BBC Radio London, Times Radio and “Woman’s Hour”. She has a master’s in international journalism from City University, London, and was awarded the "journalist-at-large" fellowship by the Local Trust charity in 2021.