As tensions escalate, Iran has developed a range of calculated options to retaliate if attacked, raising the stakes for the entire region.

It’s too soon to tell how exactly the current wave of Israeli strikes could transform the region, but one thing is clear: Israel’s actions have fundamentally reshaped the security landscape of the Middle East.

Iran has limited options to respond directly. The danger, however, is that Israel has opened a Pandora’s box: the worst Iranian response might also be the most likely—a decision to withdraw from its arms control commitments and build nuclear weapons in earnest.

Israel's strikes on archfoe Iran exposed severe weaknesses for Tehran ... but analysts say the Islamic republic's options are limited. "This is an intelligence defeat of existential proportions ...

Gordon also argued that Trump was manipulated into supporting Israel’s strikes by Netanyahu, even as Trump celebrated Israel’s killing of Iranian hardliners, noting that several of Trump’s senior advisors have urged restraint rather than intervention.

Israel struck at the heart of Iran’s nuclear, missile and military complex early Friday, in an unprecedented attack that reportedly killed three of Iran’s most powerful figures and plunges the wider Middle East into dangerous new territory.

Iran appears ready to retaliate if it faces too much pushback. It says this could be “proportionate,” although that leaves many options open.

Whether Netanyahu wants to end Iran’s nuclear program or replace its regime, they’re both risky propositions with little chance of success.