Operation Epic Folly? Trump’s and Netanyahu’s War on Iran

In this episode of Hold Your Fire! , Richard is joined by Crisis Group experts Ali Vaez, Yasmine Farouk, Mairav Zonszein and Michael Wahid Hanna to talk about how the U.S.-Israel war with Iran is unfolding and what might be next. Richard first speaks with Ali about what is happening inside Iran amid internet blackouts and heavy bombardment, debates around Iran’s leadership and Ali Khamenei’s succession, calculations in Tehran and the risks of state collapse. Next, Richard speaks with Yasmine about Iran’s continued missile and drone attacks on Gulf countries and how Gulf capitals weigh the dangers of escalation against the risks of Iran collapsing. He then speaks with Mairav about Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s strategy, how Israelis are experiencing and viewing the war, and Israel’s renewed operations in Lebanon alongside the Iran campaign. Finally, he speaks with Michael about Washington’s murky motives for entering the war, the lack of domestic support for the campaign, debates about whether Netanyahu dragged U.S. President Donald Trump into war and potential off-ramps. Click here to listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify . For more, check out our last episode “ Regime Change or Regional War? U.S. and Israel Kill Iran’s Supreme Leader ” our Iran page. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Operation Epic Folly? Trump’s and Netanyahu’s War on Iran is an episode from Hold Your Fire! by International Crisis Group.

This episode is 59:09 long.

This episode was published on Mar 7, 2026.

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