A clerical member of the Guardian Council, he was selected to serve on the Leadership Council along with President Masoud Pezeshkian and Chief Justice Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei

Al Majalla lays out three possible scenarios for how the conflict unfolds, along with their associated costs

Gulf states' delicate balancing act—maintaining security partnerships with the US while cautiously reopening channels to Iran—has been shattered

The US and Israel carried out strikes across Iran, and Tehran has retaliated by striking US/Israeli assets across the region. Could this turn into the regional war analysts have been warning about?

Military strategists have long warned that war should be waged only if those waging it know what they want to achieve. Herein lies a problem: Washington's war aims in Iran are incoherent.

The regional rivals aren't just fighting over freshwater supplies. Cairo sees Addis Ababa's bid for Red Sea access as part of a wider fragmentation strategy.

Quick, in-and-out precision operations that inflict maximum damage with minimum US casualties have long been a favoured tool of US presidents. Is Trump planning one for Iran?

Tehran isn't likely to easily fold if/when Trump attacks. This means that the longer a military confrontation drags out, the more untenable Washington's position becomes.