19 Iranian-Israeli war. In a less optimistic scenario, one possible outcome could be an Iranian breakout to nuclear weapons because of the collapse of its proxy strategy and missile deterrence. This does not mean the war was unnecessary or unsuccessful. The war achieved everything an Israeli military operation could aspire to: destroying critical sites and capabilities and prompting a reassessment of the strategic situation on the other side. It is for precisely this reason that the critical strategic achievement of the war, even beyond the direct damage caused to Iran, was the breaking of the last barrier of fear. It would be appropriate to study the successes and limitations of Operation Rising Lion. Doing so would allow the free world to establish the kind of robust and repetitive military capability that would turn a successful case into a systemic method That barrier was initially broken on October 7, 2023, when Hamas, followed by Hezbollah, dragged Israel into the longest war in its history. Rising Lion’s success in Iranian skies broke the final barrier of fear: a direct confrontation with Iran. This is a mammoth strategic change that will allow Israel to consider additional attacks in the future, a fact that will undoubtedly carry weight in Iranian regime considerations. Even more importantly, the American barrier of fear, driven by two decades of failed interventions in the region, was broken. The war demonstrated that a military operation of defined limited goals can enhance, rather than drain, national power. The worst-case scenario of another prolonged regimechange war was avoided and Iran’s allies, China and Russia, probably took notes. America’s support for Israel and the followup American airstrikes on Fordow and Natanz made clear, in the region and elsewhere, that US leadership is irreplaceable for anyone who hopes to stand up to revisionist aggressive regional actors. To preserve these achievements, as well as continue to prevent the nuclearization of the Middle East, it would be appropriate to study the successes and limitations of Operation Rising Lion. Doing sowould allow the free world to establish the kind of robust and repetitive military capability that would turn a successful case into a systemic method.
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