Why war with Iran may be necessary

Nine missiles fired by Iran in testing

Well this isn't the first time the Iranian Regime has tested missiles which have the capability to reach Israel. It seems to be another step by Iran's leader, Mahmoud Ahmadinejed toward all out war with the west.

Background

In 2005 Ahmadinejed delivered a speech titled, "The World Without Zionism" in which he declared that Israel "must be wiped off the map" adding that Iran "will eliminate this disgraceful stain from the Islamic world". Since that speech he has been a strong critic of Israel and a Holocaust denier.
Such comments were sure to cause furor amongst other nations and it did. Israel's President Olmert and George Bush strongly opposed the statements.

Iran operates as an Islamic state which means that government policy and leadership is taken from the teachings and authority of Islam. The Ayatollah Khomeini, the highest authority of religious law in Iran and with more authority than the president, stated after this that he believed that President Ahmadinejed was wrong to deny the Holocaust.

But what do the Iranians think? Most Iranians disagree with Ahmadinejed's radical beliefs. In recent council elections in April the results clearly showed a swing away from the current president. The opposition is aiming to a more peaceful, democratic and less revolutionary-like leader and the Iranians are following. Earlier in the year, opposition parties in Iran attempted to form an alliance government so that all needs could be met. They felt that Ahmadinejed was moving Iran down the road to fascism and that he is now a great threat to peace.

What the West must deal with now is, is this all just rhetoric from a 'mad man' or is Ahmadinejed an actual threat to Israel?

Simple threats?

In the 1930s the world faced a similar problem with many brushing off remarks by Chancellor Adolf Hitler as rash but nothing new. For years before and years after WWII Europe dealt with huge pogroms so anti-semitism was not a new term in their vocabulary. It was when Hitler actually acted on these beliefs in mass genocide, that Europe and the rest of the world saw the horrors of their inaction.

Today we face a similar problem. History teaches us to learn from our mistakes, and there has been no greater mistake in the last century which must be avoided at all costs- that of another Holocaust. It is clear in the most part that diplomacy simply does not work with Ahmadinejed. The UN has tried and failed to demanded Iran to stop uranium testing countless times over the last few years.

We can 'brush off' Ahmadinejed's comments or we can act. If we act, we run the risk of much of the Middle East allying themselves with Iran, seeing the destruction of Israel certain rather than a possibility. We also risk fighting a battle on the grounds as those Iraq were fought on, simply invading a nation for claiming to do something.
If America does not invade, the task of finding a solution to the crisis is left to American and Israeli diplomacy. If we do not invade those promises and 'off the cuff remarks' may turn into something quite catastrophic.

Temporary measures must be taken. Iran is operating outside the wishes of the UN and, with no power to stop the testing, it is left to the job of Israel to decide on what to do.

For now it seems, all we can do is wait and hope that the worst is averted.