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A Game of Cat and Mouse

A game of cat and mouse is currently being played out in the Middle East. The cat will chase and the mouse will run. The mouse though will eventually be caught when it tires. In this great game of cat and mouse there has been much debate on just who is the cat and who is the mouse. It is often assumed that the USA and allies have taken on the role of the cat, showing it's power through speed, tooth and claw. Speed, tooth and claw are powerful aspects of a cat but cats are also quiet and stealthy. They sneak up on their prey slowly and before it knows it the mouse has been caught and destroyed. This is the threat that Iran's nuclear program poses.

If Iran is actually the cat in this game what will be the outcome for the Middle East. Assume for a moment that Iran has produced a nuclear bomb. Who do they aim it at? Maybe Israel, USA or even Europe? Would it be able to reach as far as the USA? Probably not. They could possibly reach Israel, but to do this freely they would need to remove the American presence in Iraq to prevent a retaliatory invasion of Iran. They can achieve this in two ways.

1) Wearing down the American troops through insurgency so that they are pulled out of Iraq in combination with attacks on western home soil.

2) Bomb Baghdad and Southern Iraq with nuclear weapons in combination with attacks on western home soil.

If number 2 was to occur the political landscape of the Middle East would change forever. It would be open season on gaining control of whatever is left of Iraq. This would bring another cat out into the game. One that it is waiting patiently in the bushes to pounce. Syria is this other cat and may actually be the big cat in this game. A cat playing a very manipulative game. If Iran were to bomb Southern Iraq, Syria would take this opportunity to sweep down into Northern Iraq and gain control there. Although Iran and Syria have a defense pact together Syria would most likely renege and could even attempt to invade a part of Iran. This would be the beginning of a new Syrian empire in the Middle East with Syria gaining control of oil supplies. Syria would then use it's new found power to try and invade other Middle Eastern nations like Saudi Arabia and Lebanon. Syria would then move on Israel especially if Israel gives the Golan heights back to Syria. This would leave Israel vulnerable to attack. The might of a new Middle Eastern power backed by other Middle Eastern nations would devastate Israel. This new power would control the majority of the world's oil and the impact on the world's economy would be major. It is also possible that Islamic radicals living in Western nations would become emboldened to carry out attacks on those nations, weakening them.

Is this scenario possible? Well it was predicted thousands of years ago and is most definitely possible. Don't underestimate the power that Syria and Iran are using to manipulate the situation in the Middle East.

Learn more about this author, Melissa Walker.
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