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Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/05/opinion/iran-israel-benny-gantz.html
What the World Needs to Understand about Iran
(New York Times) Lt.-Gen. (ret.) Benny Gantz - Iran's religious leadership is devoted to exporting its fundamentalist ideology, driven by the pursuit of hegemony and captivated by the thought of its opponents' violent subjugation. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps has established around Israel a "ring of fire" of terrorist armies with capabilities comparable with those of nations. They have tens of thousands of rockets, drones and commando forces ready for attack. Furthermore, Iran continues to rush to acquire nuclear capabilities, covertly and overtly. Make no mistake: Iran is preparing, building and waiting for the right moment of weakness to pounce. It did so in Lebanon, using Hizbullah. It did the same in Syria, amid the havoc of Syria's civil war. It did so in Yemen as well. In a post-Oct. 7 reality, it is clear that Israel must - and the world should - be proactive and determined in the face of the threat the Iranian regime poses to Israel's existence and the region's future. On the military front: Governments must engage forcefully and proactively with Iranian aggression and systematically degrade its proxy capabilities. We must also prepare for the right moment to remove the threat of Iran developing a nuclear weapon. The time to act against Iran is now. It's not only a matter of necessity for Israel but also one of strategic imperative for the region and moral clarity for the world. The writer, former Israeli defense minister and IDF chief of staff, is chairman of the opposition National Unity Party.