Your editorial opinion refers (“Continued American aggression will not yield peace”, March 3).
“Iranians deserve peace and democracy” is a statement of wide consensus. They’ve had neither under the theocratic regime for 47 years! The “Supreme Leader” has ruled by divine right and without consequence; the quelling of the recent uprising killed almost half the number of people killed in the Gaza-Israel war in a matter of weeks.
One thinks, therefore, that these events are a bit more significant than framing it as “more American aggression”. That the negotiations had stalled, that they were widely viewed as delaying tactics, and that some sort of Iranian attack was imminent were all widely reported. Even Nato’s Mark Rutte applauded the precision attacks.
These events may not “yield peace”, but they create the possibility of a different Middle East. This is what might occupy the minds of Business Day’s editorial team. That and what it means for the ANC, which has deeply aligned with the Khamenei regime. Elsewhere this week there were reports of Iranians in South Africa protesting in Pretoria because the government is not on the side of the Iranian people. They certainly aren’t.
The US has done what successive presidents and hawks of other Western countries have alluded to but never actually been brave enough to do. This is the most significant development in that region for decades. Its implications and possible outcomes are what is now interesting.
Martin Neethling
Via Business Day online
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