Iran Treads Carefully to Avoid War While Empowering Proxies to Disrupt
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Iran is carefully avoiding direct military confrontation with the US and Israel, instead pushing proxies to cause trouble without provoking all-out war. Both sides want to avoid escalation.
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Israel, Iran, and the US have taken precise military actions to send signals and containment the conflict rather than letting it spiral.
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Iran supplies weapons and targeting data to proxies like the Houthis in Yemen but doesn't directly control their day-to-day operations.
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The Houthis feel more freedom from Iran to disrupt global commerce, having attacked ships in the Red Sea. But their attacks risk drawing in more direct US involvement.
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If Iran miscalculates and its proxies inadvertently kill Americans, it could trigger calls for direct US strikes on Iran, risking a broader regional war.