Considered purely as journalism, reporter Sheera Frenkel’s piece about Israel’s preparation for a strike against Iran, which appears in this morning’s Times, confirms the value of correspondents who know their patch, cultivate their contacts and keep their ears to the ground. In a wider context it offers a chilling glimpse of just how close the world may be to nuclear conflict. Granted, Israel must act tough to deter its enemies.  Parading its capacity to hit Iran may be the only way to avoid the need to acutally launch a strike. But the flip side of parading strength is that a nation may have to use it if its bluff is called. With the unelected Holocaust-denier Mahmoud Ahmedinejad in power in Tehran it is not hard to understand  why Israelis fear an Iranian nuclear weapon more than any other threat. Is this Barack Obama’s most urgent diplomatic challenge? Can we, perhaps, rely on the diplomatic genius of the Middle East Envoy formerly known as Prime Minister Tony Blair? Afghanistan is gruelling and bloody, conflict between Israel and Iran might set the entire region aflame.