US attacks on Iran put Middle-East on the verge of another war

US President Donald Trump has been accused of driving the country into war against Iran based on information that has never been confirmed. 

This after Trump took a dramatic step to insert the US into the fraught conflict between Iran and Israel, a conflict that has left more than 856 people dead and at least 3,396 others wounded since Israel launched its attack on June 13.

The decision to directly involve the US in the war comes after more than a week of strikes by Israel on Iran that aimed to systematically eradicate the country’s air defences and offensive missile capabilities, while demanding a halt to its nuclear enrichment facilities. 

On Saturday evening, Trump announced that the US had attacked three sites tied to Iran's nuclear programme, warning Iran against retaliating. 

The strikes hit uranium enrichment sites at Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan.

He expressed hope that his move would open the door to a more lasting peace, where Iran no longer had the potential to become a nuclear power. 

sraeli Prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, hailed the strikes and congratulated Trump, saying his bold decision to target Iran’s nuclear facilities with 'the awesome and righteous might of the US will change history'.

However, experts said Iran's nuclear programme does not exist.

Civil nuclear engineer, Hugo Kruger, a South African who is based in Paris, said this is the propaganda that the US and Israel have pushed to attack Iran.

He said it has not been confirmed that Iran has nuclear weapon capabilities, adding that Trump has driven the US into the war based on the information that has never been confirmed, even by the US intelligence agencies. 

He said this could be another narrative and a lie about another world war.

“Even the agencies did not confirm this, and Donald Trump at the moment, is driving the US into on the basis of information that has never been confirmed. He is spreading this incredible propaganda in the Western countries,” Kruger said. 

He said the US has the power to act against the nuclear programme and would have suspended it if it had existed. He said the US has legal and procedural frameworks for inspecting nuclear weapons, adding that this could also influence international laws.

Kruger said this should be stopped, adding that South Africa and other countries must take a stance. 

“This will stop the conflict because Israel will not be able to resist this pressure. They must do it through the United Nations,” he said. 

International relations expert, Dr Noluthando Phungula, said the conflict is bound to harm the entire world, including South Africa.

"Oil prices quickly surged up 7% by Friday afternoon and the attacks prompted an instantaneous reaction on the global markets. This will have a dire impact on the dependent developing world due to oil price increases, she said, adding that this also suggests that “we” may be facing another period of sharply higher energy prices. 

“Consequently, almost everything, petrol, gas, and food, will cost more.”

She said this reality was seen during the Russia-Ukraine conflict a few years ago, affecting people's lives around the globe.

Phungula also warned that other countries in the region could be drawn in, should the attacks continue.

President Cyril Ramaphosa also on the three countries to give the UN an opportunity and space to lead on the peaceful resolution of the matters of dispute, including inspection and verification of Iran’s status of uranium enrichment, as well as its broader nuclear capacity.

manyane.manyane@inl.co.za