Hey, it's Todd. Just a quick heads up before we start the show. The news is rapidly changing and things might have changed by the time you hear this episode. Stay up to date with all the latest by listening to your local NPR member station and by visiting npr.org. Donald Trump's war in Iran. A war the president promised would last just weeks is now in its third month.

And the ripple effects are rocking the global economy. The Strait of Hormuz still closed to most ships.

Neither Iran nor the U.S. nor Israel look ready for a peace deal right now.

Iran's Air Force and Navy are severely damaged, but recent intelligence reports say the regime has

control of more missiles and more weapon systems than the Trump administration has acknowledged

and that Iran is taking advantage of the ceasefire possibly

to rearm. This week, more threats from the president and more stepdowns. A familiar pattern

from the commander-in-chief as financial markets show deep anxiety that the war may not end

anytime soon. On Wednesday, President Trump said he's giving Iran one more chance. We'd have to open the straight. That would open immediately. So we're going to give this one shot. I'm in no hurry. You never think, oh, the midterms, I'm in a hurry. I'm in no hurry. I just, ideally, I'd like to see few people killed, as opposed to a lot. We can do it either way, but I'd like to see few people killed as opposed to a lot.

We can do it either way, but I'd like to see few people killed.

I just wonder whether or not they have the good of the people,

because some of the things they're doing to me

means they don't have the good of the people,

and they have to have the good of the people.

Meanwhile, Iranians are living under a blockade. Gulf states are absorbing the shock of Iranian missiles and of economic uncertainty. I'm Todd's Willick in for Jen White. You're listening to the 1A podcast. Today we ask, what does the Middle East look like from here? Who wins? Who loses? What happens to American influence in a region? It

just turned upside down. We'll be back with answers to those questions and a lot more after this

short break. Stay with us. Welcome back to the 1A podcast. I'm Todd's Willick.

Joining us to talk about Iran and the Middle East now, Greg Carlstrom. He's covered the region

for more than 15 years, reporting on a lot of its big events firsthand, from revolutionary

Egypt in 2011 to Israel and Gaza after October 7th, from bases in Beirut, Cairo, and Tel Aviv. Today, he's based in Dubai for

the economist, where he's the Middle East correspondent. Greg is also author of the book,

How Long Will Israel Survive the Threat from Within? And he's a frequent guest on our

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