AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): The former head of MI6, when asked who currently holds the upper hand in the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran, replied, “In my opinion, Iran. I am very sorry to have reached this conclusion, because like many of my contemporaries from the foreign service, I have suffered at the hands of the IRGC throughout my years of service, and for that reason, I have no fondness for them, nor did I shed even a single tear for [the martyred Grand Ayatollah] Khamenei. But the reality is that the United States underestimated this mission, and in my opinion, since two weeks ago, the situation has spiraled out of its control, and circumstances are in Iran’s favor.”
He continued, acknowledging the power of the Islamic Republic of Iran, stating, “On the military field, Iran has shown greater resilience than expected and has made good decisions so far. Since last June, they have distributed their military power and delegated the authority to use weapons to various groups, which has given them greater capability to withstand extremely heavy airstrikes. They have also begun what is termed the horizontal expansion of war; that is, firing missiles at anyone within range. At the time, I truly believed this was madness and insanity, but in fact, it was a very good move to increase the indirect costs for the United States, and it was successful.”
The former head of MI6, stating that the Iranians understood the energy war, added, “They then threatened shipping routes and globalized the conflict. The Iranians managed the conflict in such a way that they could keep the levers of pressure in their hands. For this reason, despite having weak cards to play, they have played them well.”
He further noted, “At the same time, the second point is that Donald Trump’s statements have confirmed what the Iranians already knew: that from their perspective, this is a civilizational war and an existential war, whereas the United States has entered a war of choice. This has given the Iranians greater endurance than the Americans, and they understand this, and in my opinion, this has handed them the initiative.”
**************
End/ 345E
