Iran Deal and the Empowerment of Islamism

commented by Nervana Mahmoud / Egypt *

“The Iran Deal was one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the United States has ever entered into.”  With those tough words, American President Donald Trump terminated the United States’ participation in the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action(JCPOA) regarding Iran’s nuclear program. His decision has created a global uproar among supporters of the deal, and some applause from others who oppose it. Three years ago, I wrote against the Iran nuclear deal. Today, I still stand against it.

The Iran nuclear deal has never been just about that country’s nuclear ambitions. For the Iranian Mullahs, the deal has been a tool to clinch an acknowledgment, albeit indirectly, from the West, that their anti-modernity model is viable and successful. In 2015, I wrote that any hopes Iran would abandon its “path of violence and rigid ideology” after forging a deal with Western powers could turn out to be no more than wishful thinking.  Three years later, Iran’s toxic rule in the Syrian civil war, its backing of the Houthis in Yemen, and the domination of its proxy, Hezbollah, in Lebanon, are all undeniable facts. My fears have proven to be true.

However, it is alarming and disheartening to see that many liberal Westerners Weiterlesen →