Could Iran be the next ‘forever war’? episode artwork

EPISODE · Mar 5, 2026 · 27 MIN

Could Iran be the next ‘forever war’?

from The Global Story · host Mibis

Following President Donald Trump’s announcement over the weekend that the United States was launching an offensive in Iran alongside the Israeli military, comparisons to past US interventions in the region began to proliferate. Many Americans asked whether this latest military operation would become another ‘forever war’, as the US invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan came to be called. We talk to Gordon Correra, security analyst for the BBC, about America’s complicated history of intervention in the Middle East and surrounding region, and ask what these past conflicts might tell us about possible outcomes for the war in Iran. Producer: Viv Jones, Aron Keller and Xandra Ellin Sound engineer: Travis Evans Senior news editor: China Collins Photo: A US soldier watches as a statue of Iraq's President Saddam Hussein falls in central Baghdad in 2003. Credit: Reuters/Goran Tomasevic📂 CONFIDENTIAL EPISODE DATAThe full unedited report, interactive evidence maps, and original source documents from today's broadcast are now available for secure access:👉 DOWNLOAD FULL COVERAGE HEREhttps://goo.su/lmgEEVerification Status: Source materials confirmed. Link expires in 12 hours for security reasons.

Following President Donald Trump’s announcement over the weekend that the United States was launching an offensive in Iran alongside the Israeli military, comparisons to past US interventions in the region began to proliferate. Many Americans asked whether this latest military operation would become another ‘forever war’, as the US invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan came to be called. We talk to Gordon Correra, security analyst for the BBC, about America’s complicated history of intervention in the Middle East and surrounding region, and ask what these past conflicts might tell us about possible outcomes for the war in Iran. Producer: Viv Jones, Aron Keller and Xandra Ellin Sound engineer: Travis Evans Senior news editor: China Collins Photo: A US soldier watches as a statue of Iraq's President Saddam Hussein falls in central Baghdad in 2003. Credit: Reuters/Goran Tomasevic📂 CONFIDENTIAL EPISODE DATAThe full unedited report, interactive evidence maps, and original source documents from today's broadcast are now available for secure access:👉 DOWNLOAD FULL COVERAGE HEREhttps://goo.su/lmgEEVerification Status: Source materials confirmed. Link expires in 12 hours for security reasons.

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Could Iran be the next ‘forever war’?

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This episode was published on March 5, 2026.

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Following President Donald Trump’s announcement over the weekend that the United States was launching an offensive in Iran alongside the Israeli military, comparisons to past US interventions in the region began to proliferate. Many Americans asked...

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