When Hamas launched its brutal attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, it sought to ignite turmoil across the Middle East and the broader Muslim world. However, the ripple effects of that fateful day have not unfolded as Hamas intended.
Since then, the terror group and its Hezbollah allies have been devastated. Their infrastructure lies in ruins, their military capabilities crippled, and their leadership eliminated. In Syria, the Assad regime has collapsed, replaced by a new government whose stance remains uncertain but is openly hostile to both Iran and Hezbollah. The land corridor that once funneled Iranian arms into Lebanon has been severed.
Iran, the chief backer of regional terror, finds itself in dire straits. Its economy is in freefall, its currency virtually worthless, and its brightest minds fleeing the country. The Iranian regime has also suffered a series of crushing blows from the Israeli Air Force, leaving its ability to defend its nuclear program in question should Israel or the U.S. decide to strike.
Even Iraq—long considered an Iranian puppet—has begun to distance itself from Tehran, shifting closer to Washington’s orbit.