One of the most striking dimensions of the US-Iran conflict has been the role of artificial intelligence. A detailed analysis in Dawn described how the joint US-Israel strikes in February 2026 demonstrated a new paradigm of warfare: AI systems capable of rapidly analyzing vast quantities of data enabled the US Central Command to conduct an initial wave of 900 strikes in remarkably compressed timeframes.
The conflict, the analysis argued, has shifted the center of gravity from traditional battlefields to data centers and software engineers. Civilian technologies have become both enablers of military power and its most vulnerable targets — blurring the line between combatant and non-combatant infrastructure and raising urgent questions about the laws and ethics of war.
Meanwhile, back in Washington, questions swirl about whether US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has a coherent strategy. Rolling Stone reported that more than a dozen officials expressed worry that the United States is “headed into another quagmire,” noting Hegseth’s rhetoric about “negotiating with bombs” but a conspicuous absence of a clear endgame for Iran.
