In a previous piece of mine, I suggested that there is an increasing deployment of political violence and even terrorism in particular in the interregional and international relations of the Middle East. This tendency to use political violence in all its shapes including terror in the regional relations and policies is obviously connected to the totalitarian countries and groups (sub-state actors) in the Middle East.

More precisely, this deployment of political violence including terror is connected to the Middle East Totalitarian Axis consisted of the last Baath located in Syria, Hezbullah, Hamas and led by Iran, the most powerful totalitarian power and the totalitarianism’s umbrella in the region.

Iran as a country controlled by a totalitarian religious ideological system is dominated by its ruling regime by means of the political violence and coercion like every totalitarian or authoritarian regime. Hence, such totalitarian system let very little means to Iranian regime to use domestically and internationally in its domestic and foreign policies. Then, the resort to political violence including terror by the Iranian regime in its foreign policies, especially the regional policies, is something quite predictable and not surprising.

Extending the means of political violence to foreign policy from the domestic policy is due to the nature of the Iranian regime and due to the success of these means in maintaining this regime and its rule in Iran. This is also a result of the Iranian regime’s proficiency in deploying these means over its violent history.

Hence, after the international and somewhat regional isolation of Iran due to the nature of its ruling regime after the Shiite Islamic revolution, this regime resorted to aggressiveness and aggressive expansion in the region while adopting an extremist agenda and rhetoric resting on its religious ideological basis.

As a result of Iranian regime’s aggressive and extremist policies in the region, and evidence of these policies, Iran funds and arms various groups and organizations affiliated with its aggressive expansionist project and interests in the Middle East like Hamas in Gaza strip, or directly affiliated with Iranian religious regime like Hezbullah in Lebanon.

Moreover, Iran funds many parties in Arab Gulf countries, which have Shiite minorities within their populations, and even funds, arms and trains many militias and special groups, especially in Iraq, not to mention Iranian arms found in Afghanistan used by Taliban militia, and al-Qaida top leaders residing in Iran. In addition, Iran secured the Baath’s affiliation and loyalty to ensure a forward Mediterranean base in Syria and funded, in this regard, some key Syrian arms contracts according to convergent reports.

For targeting supranational political violence and terror in the Middle East, the Iranian regime’s behavior is a key start point, and the Middle East Totalitarian Axis is the target.