Iran cannot be bombed into democracy. But it can be helped to find its way there | Simon Tisdall

Key Highlights

• But it can be helped to find its way thereSimon TisdallIndependent media, civil society, the rule of law – these are the things that Iranians truly need.
• And there are ways for the west to help secure themSoon after becoming president in 2017, Donald Trump ordered an attack on an Islamic State (IS) underground complex in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province.
• The strike involved the first-ever use in combat of a GBU-43 massive ordnance air blast (Moab) “bunker buster” bomb – the US’s most powerful conventional weapon.
• The bombing killed about 90 insurgents but failed to crush IS.
• It also made zero long-term difference to the US’s losing battle with the Taliban. Yet that was not the point.