COMMENT Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad, an improbable Easter bunny, scored a political victory, both in Iran and internationally, by his “gift” of the return of Britain’s 15 hostages. Against all odds, Iran emerged with a win-win from the crisis: winning by its provocation in seizing the hostages in the first place and winning again by its unilateral decision to release them.
The debacle, from its murky start in the Gulf to its end on a Tehran television stage, must be seen in the larger context of Iran’s efforts to project power in the Middle East and beyond. Through the aggressive, two-decades-long pursuit of nuclear weapons; by massive financial and armaments support to Hizbollah, Hamas and other terrorists; and by its growing subversion in Iraq, Iran’s government today is a theological revolution on the march.
