We speak with Kareem Shaheen, Middle East editor at New Lines Magazine, about the regional response to the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran. He says the Gulf countries are in a no-win situation, stuck between a belligerent Israel that has no qualms about using violence to achieve its strategic aims and a desperate Iran lashing out against U.S. allies in the region as it tries to survive. He says that no matter which side prevails, Gulf states have realized how vulnerable they are despite U.S. security guarantees. “In either scenario, I don’t think that the Gulf states will be happy with the outcome,” he says.
Shaheen’s recent article is “The Gulf Fears Whoever Wins This War.”