Iran-Israel conflict: How we got here and the Pakistan angle | Ft. Sandeep Unnithan| IOD S3 Ep 11
In Our DefenceShow Notes
The Middle East is on fire. Again. What began as Israel's retaliation against Hamas after the October 7 attacks has now exploded into a multi-front conflict involving Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and now Iran. In this episode of In Our Defence, veteran journalist and national security expert Sandeep Unnithan joins host Dev Goswami to break down how the war escalated so dramatical, and what it means for the region and the world.
The two look at Iran's underestimated military, its dual-army structure, and the massive blow dealt to its leadership in just the first week of fighting. Why does Israel seem so unbending, even at the cost of global condemnation and regional chaos? And could any of this be happening without backing from the US?
Dev and Sandeep also explore the philosophical irony behind Western nations - especially the US - dictating nuclear rules to countries like Iran, even as they maintain massive arsenals themselves. Is this another chapter in global double standards?
And finally, the two unpack a surprising development: Pakistan Army chief Asim Munir's meeting with Donald Trump during his US visit. Could this signal a renewed American effort to position Pakistan as a behind-the-scenes player in the Israel-Iran war?
Produced by Garvit Srivastava
Sound mixed by Rohan Bharti
More from In Our Defence
India appears to be in the middle of a naval shipbuilding boom. Destroyers, frigates, submarines, anti-submarine vessels and support ships are entering service with striking regularity.
Six years after the Galwan Valley clash, we revisit the night that fundamentally changed India's relationship with China.
India's Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft, or AMCA, is usually discussed as a fifth-generation stealth fighter: low observable design, internal weapons bays, sensor fusion, advanced engines, and all the cool stuff that makes defence nerds sit up straighter.
Pakistan did not just become America's ally after 1947 – it slowly became a state whose military and strategic establishment learned that survival depended on staying useful to Washington.
India has had a very busy missile season. In this episode of In Our Defence, host Dev Goswami and defence expert Sandeep Unnithan unpack a cluster of recent developments: the reported long-range hypersonic anti-ship missile test, DRDO and IAF’s TARA glide weapon trial, the Advanced Agni MIRV test, the long-duration scramjet combustor test, and the chatter around possible K-series submarine-launched missile activity.