Explosions damage homes and vehicles in northern Israel settlement

Middle East outlets link the blasts in northern Israel to a wider cycle of attacks that they say began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran and allied groups. This block argues that Washington and Tel Aviv are driving escalation through attacks on Iranian infrastructure and by rejecting meaningful diplomacy, while using fear of Iran to justify hardline policies. Commentators warn that continued strikes on Iran and Lebanon, including near nuclear sites, risk drawing the region toward nuclear confrontation and broader war.

• •Iranian leaders hold the United States and Israel responsible for any further escalation in the conflict.
• •US and Israeli forces have struck Iranian energy, water and health facilities during the current war.
• •Iran’s Revolutionary Guard threatens heavier missile fire on Israel in support of Lebanese and Palestinian allies.
• •Critics in the region describe US and Israeli policies as driven by Iranophobia and domestic hardliners.
• •Legal experts in the region question whether US, Israeli and Iranian actions comply with international law.