PNN – Pointing to the behind-the-scenes details of the Mecca agreement, the editor-in-chief of Rai al-Youm stated that the most significant consequence of a war with Iran would be the flight of the Americans from the region.
According to the report of Pakistan News Network; Abdel Bari Atwan—editor-in-chief of the pan-Arab online newspaper Rai al-Youm and a prominent Palestinian analyst—dedicated his latest editorial to recent developments, including the trilateral pact known as the “Mecca Agreement” between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan. He noted that in an article published in the American international affairs journal Foreign Affairs, Michael Fuchs—a former advisor to the administration of former U.S. President Joe Biden—raised a crucial question: Has the time come for the U.S. to withdraw from the Middle East? Fuchs answered “yes,” arguing that U.S. strategy in the region has failed and characterizing a potential war with Iran as a “major strategic disaster.”
Zionist Miscalculations and the Repetition of Another Historic Disaster for the Aggressors
Atwan added: This article brings to mind the historic strategic blunder committed by Europe, embodied in the disastrous Tripartite Aggression against Egypt in 1956. The common thread linking these two acts of aggression—the Tripartite Aggression and the US aggression against Iran—is Israel’s provocation, arrogance, and miscalculation regarding the adversary’s strength and, consequently, the international balance of power.
The article continues: This is precisely why the outcomes of both conflicts proved disastrous for the aggressors. The Suez War—or the Tripartite Aggression—marked the beginning of the collapse of the British and French colonial empires and the rise of the American alternative, which ascended to global dominance upon their ruins.
War with Iran Exposed the Failure of US Strategy
The author of this piece emphasized: We are well aware that many of Iran’s regional adversaries—whether for sectarian or ethnic reasons—do not wish for us to use terms like “defeat” for the United States and “victory” for Iran. Yet, when a figure such as strategic consultant Michael Fox validates these terms, the critical reactions from various parties across the region differ.
Abdel Bari Atwan stated: The consequences of the US-Israeli aggression against Iran have exposed the failure of the US strategy in the region—a strategy predicated on the use of force, air superiority, and the expenditure of hundreds of billions of dollars to establish nearly 50 American military bases across the region, particularly in the Arabian Peninsula and the Persian Gulf.
The Palestinian writer continued: Furthermore, this aggression demonstrated the flawed calculations of the US and its allies regarding the strength of Iran—as the leader of the Axis of Resistance—and the capabilities of other members of this axis, including Lebanon, Yemen, and Iraq. Iran caught the US and its Israeli ally off guard with its advanced capabilities in developing nuclear and missile programs, as well as its management of direct and indirect military conflicts within the region’s airspace and territorial waters.
6 Indicators of America’s Historic Defeat against Iran
According to this article, there is ample evidence confirming the accurate assessment by an American Fox News analyst regarding the failure of the U.S. military presence in the region. These points can be summarized as follows:
– First, the military failure of the United States—particularly its air and naval forces—when confronted with the missiles, drones, and strategic plans of the Axis of Resistance on the battlefield. In this regard, the United States has acknowledged the loss of over 40 highly advanced aircraft—such as AWACS, F-15s, F-35s, and aerial refueling tankers—as well as sophisticated American drones like the MQ-9.
– Second, the resilience of the Iranian system and its ability to absorb the shock of initial US attacks. This remarkable resistance by Iran lasted for about six months—during which the country grew even stronger—enabling it to not only demonstrate its military might but also bridge its intelligence gaps.
– Third, the depletion of US military capabilities and missile stockpiles. US military command has acknowledged the loss of 80 percent of its interceptor missile reserves and other munitions, leaving it incapacitated for the continuation of the war of attrition it had initiated.
Zionists—led by Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of the occupying regime—attribute this depletion of U.S. missile stockpiles primarily to Iranian missiles, whether hypersonic or cluster-warhead types such as the Fattah, Kheibar, and Khorramshahr; intercepting a single cluster-warhead missile—along with the smaller fragmentation submunitions it releases—requires as many as 70 Patriot or THAAD missiles.
– Fourth: US aggression against Iran has compromised the security and stability not only of US bases in the region but also of the occupying regime. Iranian missiles have devastated a significant portion of the Greater Tel Aviv area, shut down the port of Eilat—rendering it inoperable—targeted military bases in Haifa, and reached the vicinity of the Dimona nuclear facility.
– Fifth: The closure of two vital maritime straits in the region to global trade—the Strait of Hormuz completely and the Bab al-Mandab Strait partially—has granted Iran control over the global economy and its fluctuations; the same applies to the prices of oil, gas, and other energy resources, as well as to global inflation.
– Sixth: U.S. wars in the region (Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, and now Iran) have cost the U.S. Treasury nearly $8 trillion. We present this figure based on information found in Michael Fox’s article; we are not making it up ourselves.
Americans Acknowledge Inability to Continue War with Iran
Abdel Bari Atwan continues the article by noting that General Dan Keane, a former U.S. Army general, stated on Saturday that a quick exit strategy from a war with Iran must be found, acknowledging that air power alone would not achieve any of Trump’s objectives. The U.S. military is bogged down in a broad regional war of attrition across multiple fronts; shortages of ammunition, the recall of Patriot interceptor missiles previously sold to European nations, and the halting of deliveries to Ukraine all serve as compelling evidence of this situation.
The editor-in-chief of Rai al-Youm noted that Trump seeks a swift end to any aggression against Iran and completely rules out a ground invasion in order to save the Republican Party—and its dwindling base—ahead of the midterm elections, following a drop in his approval rating to below 28 percent. The party is facing internal rifts that could lead to a split and the formation of a third party. Furthermore, 82 percent of Americans oppose a war with Iran.