Shadab Peerzada
The recent conflict involving Iran has not only reshaped global geopolitics but also underscored the evolving nature of modern warfare where artificial intelligence (AI) and human intelligence (HUMINT) play decisive roles. The precision strikes on Iranian officials and nuclear facilities highlight a new era of warfare, blending cutting edge technology with traditional espionage. As the world grapples with the consequences of this war, the interplay between AI driven intelligence and human operatives will define future conflicts. The Israel-Iran conflict has long been a shadow war fought through proxies like Hezbollah, cyberattacks, and targeted assassinations. Israel strikes Iranian assets in Syria while Iran arms militant groups attacking Israel. U.S. involvement includes sanctions, intelligence sharing, and military aid to Israel. Tensions escalated in 2025 when Israel launched missiles at Iranian nuclear facilities and top officials in a combined new tactics and traditional espionage and hitman. The U.S. direct help to Israel was feared to create a wider Middle East confrontation.
Iran’s Intelligence Failure: Lessons from the Recent Israel U.S. Strikes
The recent coordinated attacks by Israel and the U.S. on Iranian nuclear facilities have once again exposed a glaring vulnerability in Iran’s security apparatus—its overdependence on technological surveillance at the expense of human intelligence. Despite having advanced cyber defenses and electronic monitoring systems, Iran failed to anticipate or intercept the precision strikes that disabled key nuclear infrastructure. Following the assassination of a senior Hezbollah operative in Tehran earlier this year another likely outcome of Israeli human intelligence Tehran should have strengthened its HUMINT (human intelligence) capabilities. Instead, it continued to rely heavily on signals intelligence (SIGINT) and automated threat detection systems, which can be spoofed, jammed, or bypassed entirely by skilled adversaries. The long standing success of Israel’s Mossad in infiltrating Iran’s nuclear networks, notably the 2018 operation that smuggled out Tehran’s atomic archive, serves as a stark reminder: no algorithm can replace the value of deep cover operatives. As these latest strikes demonstrate, technological tools can augment intelligence gathering, but without embedded human assets, nations risk being blindsided by unconventional threats.
Decapitation Strategy and Iran’s Intelligence Failure
The war against Iran appears to have followed a strategy of decapitating its leadership eliminating top officials, military commanders, and nuclear scientists to cripple the regime’s functionality. This tactic, reminiscent of U.S. drone strikes in the War on Terror, aims to destabilize Iran’s governance by removing key decision makers. The precision of these attacks suggests advanced intelligence and operational capabilities, raising questions about Iran’s counterintelligence failures. Despite the assassination of a Hezbollah chief in Tehran a clear warning sign Iran failed to anticipate or prevent subsequent strikes. This lapse highlights systemic weaknesses in Iran’s security apparatus, leaving it vulnerable to further destabilization.
Unpreparedness and the Nuclear Dilemma
Iran’s inability to foresee such attacks underscores a broader strategic miscalculation. The regime likely assumed that its regional influence and proxy networks would deter direct assaults. However, the unexpected nature of the strikes left Iran scrambling. Compounding its troubles, the destruction of nuclear facilities and the killing of scientists have set back Iran’s atomic ambitions by decades. Even under sanctions, Iran could have accelerated its nuclear program, but any future deal with the U.S. would now impose restrictions, making weaponization even more difficult. The targeted strikes on nuclear sites have not only demolished infrastructure but also eroded Iran’s capacity to restart such programs swiftly.
The Global Nuclear Arms Race Intensifies
The war has sent a chilling message to the world: only nuclear armed nations can deter foreign intervention. The precision strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities have demonstrated that conventional defenses are insufficient against technologically superior adversaries. This realization will likely trigger a rapid nuclear arms race, particularly among anti-American states. Nations like Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Egypt may now view nuclear weapons as essential for survival. Israel, already a nuclear power, will fiercely oppose proliferation in its neighborhood, potentially leading to preemptive strikes and further regional conflicts.
The Iran War and the Dawn of a New World Order
In this new landscape, North Korea emerges as a pivotal player. As the only heavily sanctioned nation with an active nuclear program, it could become a supplier of nuclear technology to other rogue states. Pyongyang’s expertise in circumventing sanctions makes it an attractive partner for countries seeking nuclear capabilities. This shift could elevate North Korea from a pariah state to a key geopolitical actor, reshaping alliances and power dynamics. The recent conflict involving Iran has sent shockwaves across the globe, reshaping geopolitical dynamics and setting the stage for a new era of international relations. The war’s strategic implications, its outcomes, and the emerging world order demand a closer examination.
The Return of Cold War Politics
The Iran conflict has reignited Cold War style tensions, with the world increasingly splitting into rival blocs. The U.S. and its allies face off against a growing alliance between Russia and China, both of whom may extend support to Iran and other adversarial states. Proxy wars will surge as superpowers avoid direct confrontation but engage in indirect battles for influence. The next world order will be shaped by those who best combine machine efficiency with human cunning ushering in an age where the line between spy and algorithm blurs, and the stakes have never been higher. The United Nations, already seen as ineffective, will further lose relevance, exposed as a symbolic body incapable of enforcing peace.
A More Dangerous World
The Iran war has set a dangerous precedent, one where targeted assassinations, preemptive strikes, and nuclear proliferation become normalized. The erosion of international institutions, coupled with rising bipolar tensions, signals a return to an era of unrestrained power politics. As nations scramble for nuclear deterrence and superpowers jostle for dominance, the world inches closer to larger, more devastating conflicts. The lessons of Iran are clear: in this new age, only the strongest and the most armed will survive. The next world order will be defined not by diplomacy, but by the threat of annihilation. The question is no longer if another major war will erupt, but when. The once covert wars are now inching toward direct confrontation, with the U.S. caught between restraining Israel and deterring Iran. If full scale war erupts, it could drag in Hezbollah, destabilize the Middle East, and spike global oil prices. For now, the shadow war continues but the rules are changing, and the risk of a wider conflict grows daily.
Burkina Faso’s leader, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, speaking just days after the attacks, Traoré argued that Iran’s vulnerability even with its advanced defenses highlights the strategic imbalance faced by nations lacking credible deterrents. He suggested that without nuclear capability, sovereign states remain exposed to external aggression and covert sabotage. More recently, during a May 10, 2025 meeting in Moscow, Traoré urged that Africa “embrace practical science and pursue self‑reliance in military and technological capabilities specifically nuclear development as a path to true sovereignty” In those remarks, he placed nuclear development squarely at the heart of resistance to imperialism, arguing that terrorism stems from foreign domination and that mastering nuclear science represents an act of African self‑determination meanwhile the Iran war has proved him somehow right in his thoughts similarly more world leaders will now race to acquire nukes as soon as possible.
Shadab Peerzada, Politician and State Head, Jammu and Kashmir Civil Society and Policy Research (CSPR) of All India Professional’s Congress (AIPC).
