The American public did not initially understand why the country needed to go to war far from home, at a time when there did not appear to be a direct and immediate threat to the United States. What brought about the change?
In the first hours of a war, another battle usually unfolds—less visible than the fighting on the battlefield. This is the battle over interpretation. The public tries to understand why the war broke out, who is responsible, and above all whether it was necessary. The American campaign against Iran began precisely in this moment of deep public confusion.
Like more than one hundred thousand Israelis, I found myself stranded abroad when the attack began. But the real story actually starts a few hours earlier. On Friday evening, just before the outbreak of the attack on Iran, I participated in an international conference attended by political scientists and international relations scholars.
During dinner, one central question came up: would Trump really attack Iran? When I asked the question aloud, all seven of the participants sitting with me at the table burst out laughing. The idea that Trump was about to launch a large-scale military attack on Iran seemed almost absurd to them.
