The storm clouds of war are gathering in the Middle East as never before. Those who allowed themselves to believe that the defeat of Salafi-jihadism would mark the return of stability to the region should think again.
With the uptick in bellicose rhetoric emanating from Riyadh, Tel Aviv and Washington towards Iran, the conflict in Syria against Daesh, Nusra, and the various other Wahhabist groups, increasingly takes on the character of a prelude to the much wider conflict against Iran, which in many ways is a conflict already underway in Yemen, and of course with the pattern of Israeli air and missile strikes against Iranian targets in Syria.
What is clear is that something, somewhere has to give. Iran will and cannot continue to sit back in the face of what are serious provocations, underpinned by the moves underway to unpick the p5+1 nuclear deal in Washington.
One of the few consistent positions of the Trump presidency is animus towards Iran and the nuclear deal signed off by his predecessor, Obama. With avowed neocons such as John Bolton recruited to his administration, with James 'Mad Dog' Mattis' propensity for shooting first and asking questions later, it now appears a question of 'when' not 'if' conflict erupts.
Joining us to analyze the trajectory of events is former Wall Street and UN correspondent, Joe Lauria.
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