By William James Martin

The efforts of Israel and its US supporters and the Obama administration to institute crippling sanctions on Iran may have less to do with a potential nuclear capability than with the effort by Israel to manage the configuration and distribution of power in its sphere of influence.

The takedown of Saddam Hussein by the US in 2003 and the dismantlement of its military left Iran unopposed by a comparable military adversary, and, ultimately resulted in a neighboring state whose officials enjoyed close ties to Iran and whose government was dominated by Shiite Muslims.

In addition, it opened a corridor through which armaments could pass to Syria and through Syria to Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Israel’s only significant military challenge in the region is Hezbollah which was formed under the auspices of the Iranian theocracy and which is dependent on Iran for it armaments. Hezbollah is understood, by the Israel government, as a proxy military force of Iran.

The potential  of Iranian Shiism to ignite the loyalties of the Shiite minorities in Saudi Arabia and the Shiite majority in Bahrain present a troubling prospect of Israel being surrounded by governments with close ties to Iran and sharing its hostility to Israel.

The energy source that is Israeli hegemonic  regional policy driving the US to, first of all attack Iran militarily, or if not that, to institute crippling emasculating sanctions on Iran is engendered by the same motivations that drove the US government to invade Iraq and to destroy both Saddam and his military capacity.

It has very much to do with Israel hegemonic calculus and much less to do with an Iranian nuclear weapon, which the US intelligence agencies, and probably also Israel’s, denies exists.

– William James Martin contributed this article to PalestineChronicle.com.