Even if Iran continues to be able to mass-produce drones, the mullahs’ regime will increasingly become militarily toothless. But as the overpowering Israeli response has demonstrated, it will not be sufficient to affect the military balance of power. An insurrection is not, however, a spontaneous riot – a phenomenon to which Iran has become accustomed since the first mass protest movement in 1999. Throughout the entire first chain of events, Israel has been demanding the destruction of Iran’s military capacities to ensure its own survival. The political philosopher Pierre Hassner knew this when, on the eve of George W. Bush’s ill-advised war in 2003, he ventured to prophesize that ‘in the long term, the complexity of the world will have its revenge’.

Source: The Guardian March 24, 2026 11:21 UTC