Bulwark Takes Trump's Iran Ultimatum (w/ Margaret Donovan)
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Mar 24, 2026 Margaret Donovan, a former assistant U.S. attorney and Army JAG who analyzes the law of armed conflict, discusses Trump's threats to hit Iranian power plants. She explains when civilian infrastructure can become lawful targets. They debate military-necessity, proportionality, intelligence and operational limits of a rushed strike. They also cover legal chains of command, refusing unlawful orders, and JAG duties.
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Civilian Power Plants Are Not Automatically Legitimate Targets
- Targeting civilian infrastructure can be legal only if the facility has lost protected status or its destruction offers a definite military advantage.
- Margaret Donovan warned Trump's threat to bomb Iranian power plants lacked a clear military objective and likely fails necessity, proportionality, distinction, and unnecessary suffering tests.
Wide Campaigns Against Power Grids Are Logistically Impractical
- Large-scale strikes on an entire nation's power generation are logistically implausible and would overload military intelligence, targeting, and strike assets.
- Hertling emphasized the time needed for target assessment, collateral damage estimates, and limited strike capacity versus presidential 48-hour deadlines.
Mosul Mosque Strike Showed Why Proof Matters
- Mark Hertling recounted striking a mosque in Mosul after ISR showed arms caches and enemy movement using the religious facility.
- The strike provoked local outrage until footage proved the mosque's use for terrorist operations.