Ford School professor of practice Javed Ali has been a leading analytical voice on events in Iran over the past two weeks. Since the initial strikes that shook the Iranian regime, the Mideast expert and former National Security Council senior official has explained the implications of conflict for the Gulf region and in the United States. Ali was quoted in a March 2nd article on the logic behind Iran widening the conflict, saying, "Part of the strategy is they [Iran] have diplomatic and economic and commercial ties with all those countries, and that's why all the Gulf countries didn't want this conflict to happen in the first place. By Iran attacking them, not only will they try to achieve some effect against the U.S. military but also have the Gulf countries put pressure on the White House as well to put an end to this."
You can read and view Ali's media commentary on the conflict in full below:
Iran launches missile with one-ton warheads, LiveNow on Fox News, March 5, 2026
Iran Conflict: What could new leadership in Iran look like?, Radio New Zealand, March 4, 2026
FBI on Alert: Lone Wolves And Cyber Threats!, The Great Voice, March 4, 2026
Iran War commentary, (remarks at 1:36:00), BBC, March 3, 2026
How far will this war spread and for how long?, News Talk, The Claire Byrne Show, March 3, 2026
Terror concerns heightened after Iran attack, but official alerts scant, Detroit Free Press, March 3, 2026
Iran drags its neighbors into conflict as fighting spreads across Middle East, The National News Desk, March 2, 2026
U-M national security and intelligence policy expert offers insight into U.S.-Israel offensive, WEMU, March 2, 2026
US jets shot down by Kuwait in friendly fire incident, LiveNow on Fox News, March 2, 2026
US-Iran conflict threatens to escalate into wider war: five scenarios explained, I-News, March 2, 2026
US-Iran conflict raises fears of prolonged regional escalation, LiveNow on Fox News, March 2, 2026
How US strikes on Iran could trigger a wider war with its proxies, News Nation, March 2, 2026
Outrage over US-Israel attacks on Iran may have sparked violence in Texas, Al Jazeera, March 2, 2026
Iran 'not backing down': Former NSC official, ABC News, March 1, 2026
How US strikes on Iran could trigger a wider war with its proxies, The Hill, March 1, 2026
U.S. & Israel launch military strikes on Iran LiveNow on Fox News, February 28, 2026
Iran calls out Trump after State of the Union nuclear obliteration comments LiveNow on Fox News, February 25, 2026
