The Iranian Nuclear Issue: Like Cancer, Don’t Treat the Symptom—Eliminate the Cause

The war in the Middle East has broken out, with Israel primarily targeting Iran’s nuclear sites, of which there are several. This is arguably an action that is long overdue. For the better part of 46 years, the radical Islamic regime in Iran has been metastasizing throughout the Middle East via its proxies—Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, Iraqi radicals, and others. It has also been spreading cells across the globe, including in South America, North America, Europe, and Australia.

The regime espouses a radical interpretation of Islam.

Central to its worldview is the belief in the return of the 12th Imam, also known as the Mahdi—a concept in Shiite eschatology. According to this belief, the 12th Imam (Imam al-Mahdi) is in occultation and will return in the future to bring justice and peace to the world. For the theocrats in Tehran, sowing chaos is seen as a prerequisite for his return.

Thus, the Iranian regime’s actions are aimed at eliminating all infidels—particularly Jews and Christians—and are driven by both theological and political motivations. In this analogy, Iran is the primary cancer, and its proxies are the metastasized cancer cells that have spread throughout the world. Yet, the West has largely stood by, treating only the symptoms.

Before the 1979 revolution, Israel and Iran maintained good diplomatic relations. Under the rule of the Shah, Iran was modernizing. Although a Muslim, the Shah implemented reforms that improved the standard of living and granted women full rights, including freedom from wearing the hijab.

When the Shah was overthrown, Iran entered a theocratic dictatorship that imposed severe restrictions and legitimized hostage-taking as a modus operandi. Who could forget the seizure of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran shortly after the revolution? Those hostages were only released after a new American president took office. Hostage-taking became a hallmark of Iran’s proxies, as seen in Hamas’s October 7th assault on Israeli civilians.

Iran remains the only country in the world with the explicit goal of eliminating another sovereign state—Israel. It has repeatedly declared this intention, and woe to those in the West who dismiss such threats. This is not a regime that can be negotiated with. That is merely treating symptoms. Iran is resolutely pursuing nuclear weapons, having hidden its development programs deep within mountain caverns under the pretense of peaceful energy initiatives.

Many in the West are naive—among them, Tucker Carlson. Perhaps "naive" is generous. Since leaving Fox News, Carlson’s antisemitism has become more apparent, evidenced by the Holocaust deniers he has hosted on his show on X. One wonders whether he would maintain his tone if terrorists stormed his home, raped and mutilated his wife, burned his children alive, and took him hostage. Yet, he continues to act as an apologist for nearly every authoritarian regime on the planet.

There is, at least, one bit of good news: Trump appears to be distancing himself from Carlson. In a recent interview, he made it clear that Carlson does not dictate his actions—a welcome development.

Make no mistake: many Iranians oppose the regime. I’ve met numerous Iranians here in Perth who yearn for the regime’s downfall. In my travels abroad, I’ve encountered Iranians who long for the way life used to be in their homeland. Many are of the Bahá'í faith, which has suffered persecution under the regime. The spiritual center of the Bahá'í faith today is located in Haifa, Israel.

The root cause of this current conflict can be traced back to Barack Obama. In his second term, he seemed determined to empower Iran. The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) was an agreement that allowed limited inspections of Iran’s nuclear facilities, lifted sanctions, and—most controversially—released $150 billion, much of which flowed into Iran’s terror network.

One of the major flaws of the JCPOA was its 10-year sunset clause, after which Iran would be free to enrich uranium without restriction. Another flaw was Iran’s refusal to allow inspections of military sites, and its maintenance of undeclared nuclear facilities.

Trump, in his first term, scrapped the Iran nuclear deal and reinstated sanctions. With Biden’s election, Obama-era policies toward Iran returned. One has to question the rationale behind such a reversal. Unsurprisingly, proxies like Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis ended up stockpiled with missiles—courtesy of Iran.

The Iranian regime has masterfully employed taqiyya—the age-old tactic of deception—to mislead the West and advance its aims. Meanwhile, the West has shown a weak-kneed response, dealing only with Iran's proxies rather than the root cause. Now, Israel has finally taken decisive action against the regime itself and its nuclear ambitions with targeted surgical strikes. What is Iran’s response? Lobbing ballistic missiles into Israeli civilian areas. That is what terrorists do.

What’s concerning is that we have feckless leaders in the West, like Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong who can only utter inane statements such as, “The two parties need to negotiate.” The stupidity of such people defies belief. You can’t negotiate with extremist religious ideologues. It’s what has go us into this predicament.

Let’s not forget: in 2024, Iran, unprovoked, launched hundreds of ballistic missiles at Israel. In truth, this war has been underway for some time.

If cancer is to be treated effectively by conventional means, the tumor must be excised—ideally before it metastasizes. If left unchecked, it spreads throughout the body, making treatment far more difficult. The West has been derelict in its duty, allowing a cancer, Iran’s genocidal ambitions—particularly toward Israel—to proceed largely unchallenged.

There is only one solution: dismantling Iran’s nuclear program. But ultimately, the real cure lies in removing the theocratic regime itself, which represents a modern manifestation of Nazism. Radical surgery on the regime—not merely its proxies—is the necessary prescription if peace is to return to the Middle East. Unfortunately, to date, Israel is the only country dealing with this scourge on our planet.