But this painfully unpredictable new world conjures a risk of miscalculation between global adversaries, in conflicts where knowns and norms held crisis at bay. As I write, an extraordinary tit-for-tat is occurring between the Iranian-backed Iraqi Shia militia group Kataib Hezbollah and the United States. Three Coalition personnel were killed by rocket fire in Iraq , prompting CENTCOM to retaliate, leveling Kataib Hezbollah facilities and possibly killing their personnel. Does the minimal attention this escalation is getting mean it will pass without further incident, or rapidly develop into something worse? Washington's campaign of "maximum pressure," sanctions and other less visible methods of punishment, has inflicted some damage.

Source: CNN March 13, 2020 15:00 UTC