The Iranian saga has become a fixture in regional and international politics, with its multi-faceted, interconnected issues, challenges, trump cards and proxies. This has vexed regional and international players alike.
The disputed presidential elections in June sent ripples through the two competing camps — the reformists and the conservatives. As a result, the government has lost much of its legitimacy. Then came the suicide bombing last week in impoverished, majority-Sunni Sistan-Balochistan province, which has exposed the fault lines and ethnic strife within Iran's polity. This vulnerability could be exploited by its enemies to weaken Iran further and wreak havoc.
In the Middle East and beyond, Iran's fingerprints are ubiquitous as Tehran meddles in many countries' affairs. For evidence of this, look no further than Iran's nuclear programme and its ambitious attempt to project itself as the major player in the region, with fingers everywhere from western Afghanistan to Morocco, Iraq, Yemen, Lebanon and Gaza. Iran has emerged as the leading player in Iraqi affairs and is waiting out the Americans. Iran continues to be the dominant regional player in the Gulf, the most vital strategic region in the world, key to energy security and world stability.
Yemen's president and foreign minister have been outspoken about Iranian involvement in their affairs. Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh believes Tehran hopes to create "a Shiite belt on the Saudi border" by supporting, training and equipping the Al Houthi insurgency.
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