The presidential elections come at a time when Iran is reeling under the pressure of sanctions and having been isolated in the region with the rise of Sunni Islamism.

Constant bickering between Islamist and secular leaders has resulted in deadlock over the new constitution. The Ennahda-led government has been caught between the rock and a hard place, having to deal with increased hostility of the Salafi jihadist movement while at the same being accused of being lenient by the secularists.

The US may have provided the support and platform for the apology, but it was something Israel had to do desperately as it was finding the developing regional situation difficult to handle with every passing day.

The US has spent over a trillion and a half dollars and this huge expenditure has nearly unhinged its domestic economic equilibrium. At the strategic level the results for the US have been even more disconcerting in terms of Iraq's Shiite-led government refusing to let US troops stay on as well as extending support for fellow Shiites in Syria.