What Can The War in Iran Expose About America's Obsession with Power?
After Trump instigated the war in Iran, the world froze in anticipation. The regime of Ali Khamenei, who later died from an attack conducted by Israel and the US, was contested by a foreign intervention. Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the deceased Supreme Leader, took over after his death.
The reason for the attack was nuclear disarming and the missiles supposedly targetted military sites in Tehran, the capital. According to the media, several hospitals and schools were destroyed, including the Gandhi Hospital in Tehran Province and a girls' school in southern Iran. UNESCO stated that such attacks are a grave violation of humanitarian law.
The conflict is still far from over, despite Trump's unsubstantiated claim that the war is "very complete, pretty much" and his alleged peace talks concerning the opening of the Strait of Hormuz. As much as 20% of oil exports are transported through the Strait of Hormuz which has made the rest of the world witness a dramatic surge in energy prices.
Iran's lasting regime
Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had been in charge of the country since 1989. Democracy was non-existent under his rule. Women continued to be treated like second-class citizens through restrictions of their rights in marriage, inheritance, or employment and compulsory veiling. Torture became a systematic punishment for political prisoners and executions of religious minorities and protesters took place regularly.
Iran was also responsible for providing military aid to Bashar al-Assad's government in Syria and supporting Russia by supplying drones and ballistic missiles.
Trump's saviour complex
Trump has a tendency to insert himself into politically challenged regions and intervene in order to appear as a troubleshooter. Such behaviour can be identified as a case of messiah or saviour complex. This concept can be associated with populist leaders who present themselves as the only ones who can save their country in times of crisis. This danger can reveal itself as a real or imaginary threat from a foreign, alien enemy. Trump's 'America First' approach demonstrates how he promotes US supremacy over other countries and believes that US interests should come above anything else. He often exaggerates and uses emotionally charged vocabulary in order to highlight his message. Therefore, any conflict initiated by Trump is emphasised as necessary to protect American interests.
Looking closely at what happened with Venezuela and Iran, the narrative of Trump suggests that he believes that he is bringing freedom to those countries. "It was an operation against a heavily fortified military fortress in the heart of Caracas to bring outlaw dictator Nicolás Maduro to justice," said Trump during a news conference after the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. About Iran, he stated that: "A short time ago, the United States military began major combat operations in Iran. Our objective is to defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime, a vicious group of very hard, terrible people."
According to his own words, Trump believes that he can single-handedly end all terror and suffering.
Politics is one thing, but what about the civilians?
Some Iranians hoped that destabilisation of the regime would result in change and a step towards democracy. A Tehran resident told the BBC that: "We thought they'd kill all the senior figures and the regime would collapse in days, but we are in the second week now and every night I wake to explosions." The reality is looking less promising.
The Iranian Red Crescent Society stated that Israeli and US strikes on Iran damaged 82,000 civilian structures. On top of that, as many as 1,500 civilians have died in Iran so far. The situation in the wider Middle East is looking ambiguous as Iran issued strikes against Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
The future holds uncertainty for both weakened Iran and the warmongering US. Trump's alleged reports of peace talks may be another one of his narrative strategies to further feed his saviour complex.