The latest exchange between Israel and Iran in June 2026 has been widely framed as another dangerous escalation in an already combustible region. Yet focusing solely on Iranian missiles risks obscuring a far more consequential reality.  Iran’s strike did not emerge from a geopolitical vacuum. It arrived after months of devastating warfare across Gaza and Lebanon, after repeated ceasefire violations, after the destruction of hospitals, homes, universities and critical civilian infrastructure, and after a mounting death toll that has surpassed 76,000 people across multiple theatres of conflict. The deeper story is not simply one of retaliation. It is the collapse of the belief that international law still applies equally in the Middle East. For decades, the international system has rested […]