Deep Dive: Ynetnews Outlines Potential US-Israel Strike Targets in Iran: Air Defenses, Missiles, IRGC

From a geopolitical analyst's perspective, a US-Israel strike targeting Iran's air defenses, missiles, and IRGC would represent a calculated escalation in the long-standing shadow war between Israel and Iran, rooted in decades of proxy conflicts across the Middle East. Iran's air defenses, often Russian-supplied systems like S-300s, protect nuclear and military sites, while its missile program enables strikes on Israel and US bases, as seen in 2024 direct attacks. The IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Iran's ideological military branch parallel to the regular army) commands proxies like Hezbollah and Houthis, making it a strategic linchpin for Tehran's regional influence. This scenario underscores Israel's doctrine of preemption against existential threats and US commitments to allied defense, potentially altering power balances in Syria, Lebanon, and the Gulf. The international affairs correspondent lens reveals cross-border ripple effects: neutralizing IRGC assets could disrupt supply lines to militias, easing pressures on shipping in the Red Sea and energy routes in the Strait of Hormuz, where 20% of global oil transits. Key actors include the US (providing intelligence and munitions), Israel (executing precision strikes), and Iran (retaliating via proxies or direct means), with Russia and China as backers supplying arms. Historical context traces to the 1979 Islamic Revolution, birthing the IRGC, and intensified post-2002 Axis of Evil label, with cultural Shiite messianism driving Iran's anti-Western stance. Global audiences must grasp this as not mere aggression but a response to Iran's nuclear ambiguity and 2023-2024 barrage of 300+ missiles on Israel. Regionally, intelligence experts note Iran's dispersed, hardened facilities across provinces like Isfahan and Semnan, leveraging mountainous terrain and underground bunkers—cultural hallmarks of Persian resilience seen in the Iran-Iraq War. Stakeholders range from Supreme Leader Khamenei (IRGC patron) to Quds Force commander Esmail Qaani, whose elimination could fracture command. Implications extend to oil prices spiking for Europeans, refugee flows from proxy wars affecting Turkey and Jordan, and emboldened Sunni states like Saudi Arabia pursuing normalization. Outlook: such strikes risk wider war but could deter Iran's nuclear sprint, forcing diplomatic off-ramps via Oman or Qatar, while testing Biden-Netanyahu coordination amid US elections. Nuance lies in the asymmetry: Israel's Iron Dome contrasts Iran's saturation tactics, yet US involvement invokes 1980s tanker war precedents. Economically, Gulf allies benefit from weakened IRGC naval threats, but humanitarian fallout in densely populated areas near sites demands precision to avoid mass casualties, echoing 2020 Soleimani strike's restraint.