Opening a Second Front

Ready to seek sanctions against Iran in July, US President George Bush assumes that Hezbollah’s offensive against Israel, sponsored by Iran, was designed to distract the US and Israelis. With UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan urging support for a ceasefire, Bush urges restraint, yet maintains that Iran’s goal is to spur chaos, particularly for moderate governments in the region, allowing the price of oil to rise and Iranian nuclear development to continue. Author Georg Mascolo of “Der Spiegel” theorizes that Washington views the violence as an opportunity to coalesce Arab opposition to Iran and for Israel to accomplish military objectives in the US-led war on terror. – YaleGlobal