JEWISH CHRONICLE
Trump’s time advantage: the key to the Iran war strategy
Yaakov Katz
March 17, 2026

…When Israel launched its campaign against Iran in June 2025 during what became known as the 12-day war, it carried most of the operational burden, sending its air force 2,000 kilometres to strike nuclear facilities, missile bases, and critical elements of Iran’s military infrastructure. The United States played an important but what is best defined as a supporting role, deploying B-2 bombers to hit the hardened nuclear sites of Natanz, Isfahan, and Fordow. But what began then has since evolved into something far more significant. Operation Roaring Lion, as it is known in Israel, and Operation Epic Fury, as it is called in Washington, are unfolding under a president who is not approaching the end of his tenure, but rather still at the beginning of it. Donald Trump has nearly three years remaining in office, and that fact alone impacts the calculus in Tehran in ways that should not be underestimated. READ MORE