Allies Wage Separate Wars of Attrition

The United States and Israel are conducting different kinds of attrition campaigns at once: the U.S. is focused on degrading Iran’s military production and launch capability (missile stockpiles, propellant factories, naval assets), while Israel is conducting strikes aimed at political attrition of regime personnel and proxies. Those divergent aims complicate common exit criteria, make coherent public justification harder, and raise the risk of unintended escalation between military and political effects. — If allies pursue distinct attrition objectives, coalition messaging, de‑escalation criteria, and end‑states will be misaligned, prolonging conflict and increasing strategic costs.