WANA (Jul 06) – With Israel’s attack on Iran, Brzezinski’s prediction came true: “The emergence of Shia nationalism in Iran.”

 

Zbigniew Brzezinski, the prominent American strategist, warned in 2004 that any external pressure or military attack on Iran would lead to the integration of “Iranian nationalism” with “Shia fundamentalism.”

 

In 2004, Brzezinski wrote in a report titled “Iran: Time for a New Approach,” criticizing George W. Bush’s administration: “America’s strategic objective should be to separate Iranian nationalism from Shia fundamentalism. Otherwise, these two historical forces will synergize and create an explosive power.”

 

Israel’s missile and drone attack on Iran, especially amidst the Gaza conflict, has precisely resulted in the phenomenon Brzezinski warned of twenty years ago:

 

“The merging of a wounded Shia identity with a threatened national identity, all within the civilizational context of Iran.”

Iranian Shi’ite Muslims attend a ceremony to mark Ashura, the holiest day on the Shi’ite Muslim calendar, in Tehran, Iran July 6, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency)