Iran’s Strategy – Forcing a War of Attrition
Yossi Schwartz ISL (RCIT section in Israel/Occupied Palestine) 21.03.2026
Iran continues to escalate its attacks on the energy infrastructure of the Gulf states and undermine the freedom of action of its imperialist rivals. In the assessment of senior Israeli officials, Iran is confident that it will succeed in exhausting the United States and Israel for several months, to hold out, and in the end, the regime’s survival is a victory.
About three weeks after the outbreak of the war against Iran, the joint attack by the United States and Israel on Iran has turned into a broad regional conflict, in which Tehran is working to limit the freedom of action of its adversaries, and dictate the terms of the war, including by closing the Strait of Hormuz and creating a global energy crisis. And so, in response to the Zionist monster’s bombing of a large gas field, it began a new phase, when it escalated the conflict and directly damaged strategic energy infrastructure in the Gulf, including major gas facilities in Qatar, and an attack on Saudi Arabia oil.
These measures undermine regional stability, and deeply harm the global energy market. At the same time, Hezbollah is harming Israel by firing rockets and drones. The Israeli cities in the north of Israel are desperate. Many left and it is not clear whether they will return to the north of the Zionist monster.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Al Jazeera yesterday that “Iran is not asking for a ceasefire, but rather a complete and permanent end to the fighting on all fronts – in Lebanon, Yemen, Iraq and Iran.” Iran also demanded the rebuilding of the super structures that were destroyed.
Commentators in the Arab world claim that the US administration is now faced with two main options:
1) Continued military escalation – a move that may advance the goals, but may also expand the conflict, overburden the forces, and deepen the pressure, both from the American opponents of the war, who constitute the majority, and from many countries that refuse to join the US campaign against Iran.
2) Gradual withdrawal – a step that will reduce direct costs, but raise doubts about the credibility of the United States, and will be perceived as an Iranian victory that will allow Tehran to gradually recover and renew its regional influence.
Other senior political analysts in the Western imperialist countries say that if the U.S. President Donald Trump feels that he has achieved at least some of the goals, he may end his involvement. But for now, it is impossible to know what the volatile Trump, who recently said that he will stop the war, will do and feel in his bones that he has won.
As of now, Israel’s political leadership claim that Trump is determined to achieve victory, and he is demonstrating a firm and stable stance in his positions – despite Iran’s steadfastness in the campaign, its continued attacks on the Gulf states with missiles and drones, and the reaction of the oil markets following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Trump even declared that “the overthrow of the regime in Iran is more important than the price of oil:”
According to senior security sources,( the Netanyahu government) Iran refuses to give in, and is confident that it will succeed in exhausting the United States and Israel for several months, holding out under American-Israeli pressure, and ultimately presenting the regime’s very survival as a great achievement and a victory over the United States and Israel.
Security Zionist officials say the Iranian threat to close the Strait of Hormuz illustrates how Tehran is making sophisticated use of its geographical location to influence global trade and energy arteries. This would force the United States to rely on international cooperation to reopen, by force, if necessary, the shipping route. So far, this is not happening, in part because of the lack of response from countries that fear a direct confrontation with Iran.
As for the nuclear sites, the United States has not yet taken military action using heavy bombers to destroy the fortified sites deep underground. It is estimated that this stage is still expected to be reached.
The fate of 460 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60 percent is also still unclear. They may be buried in the ground, and it is also possible that the Iranians managed to rescue them and are hiding in a secret location. According to senior Israeli officials, the war will not end until this issue is resolved, either militarily or politically, and Trump will not accept leaving this uranium in Iran’s hands.
In summary, the challenge for Iran is not only military, but strategic: how to maintain deterrence and power without being dragged into a protracted war that will erode the strategic advantages. Ultimately, the outcome of the war will be determined not only on the battlefield, but also by how it will reshape the regional balance of power for years to come.
Revolutionary defeat for the imperialists!
For an Anti-Imperialist united front in Iran and in the entire world!