The current U.S. approach toward Iran reflects a long-building confrontation with a persistent threat posed by the regime in Tehran, says Walid Phares, a foreign policy analyst and author.
The U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Saturday in what President Donald Trump said was a massive operation to destroy the country’s military capabilities and eliminate the threat of its creating a nuclear weapon.
Speaking about the escalating tensions, Phares pointed to his firsthand experience during the 1983 bombing of the U.S. Marine barracks and French military headquarters in Beirut.
The attack, which killed 241 American service members and 58 French troops, marked what he called his first encounter with the forces he believes are linked to Iran’s regional strategy.
"We’re talking about many decades," Phares told Newsmax TV’s "America Right Now," noting that he published his first book on the issue in 1987, before immigrating to the United States.
He characterized the threat as both personal and analytical, shaped by years of study and observation.
"So, this is something very close to my memories and also to, you know, the analysis of what it is."
According to Phares, Trump faced two primary options in dealing with Tehran.
The first was to continue negotiations with Iran’s leadership despite its record in the region and alleged activities targeting U.S. forces and interests.
Under that approach, he said, the administration would allow diplomatic envoys to pursue talks, even if doubts remained about Iran’s intentions.
"He’s giving his delegates, his envoys, every space for them to negotiate, even if we already knew what the intentions were. But he had to do it," Phares said, adding that such outreach was undertaken despite skepticism.
The second option, which Phares said is now underway, involves coordinated military action by the United States and Israel targeting key components of Iran’s power structure.
He said operations are focused primarily on the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC, which he described as one of the regime’s central pillars.
"That's what we see now," Phares said.
"They are targeting dozens and dozens — I don't know the exact number because I don't want anybody to challenge me on that, but about 70 or more targets are being struck."
He also suggested that Iran’s Basij militia, a paramilitary force often deployed for internal security and crowd control, could be a future target.
"I call them 'the lower SS', the people, the militiamen who control the streets.
"Once you have dismantled them and it's going to take some little time, then the expectation is that the population will take over," he said.
If those forces are dismantled, Phares said, the expectation is that the Iranian population would move to seize government buildings and assert control, paving the way for negotiations over a transitional government.
"It looks like the president has chosen the view that a future government, a near future, I hope, government, will shut down all the nuclear programs, will shut down all the threats, and will dismantle the militias, Hezbollah, Hamas, etc."
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Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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