If Iran succeeds in being seen as the genuine patron of Palestinian national aspirations, it will also succeed in legitimizing its claim for dominance in the Middle East. Israel, a country in shock following its failure to destroy Hezbollah last summer, and humiliated by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejhad’s vow to “wipe Israel off the map” – a threat backed up by Iran’s support of Hamas and Hezbollah – now talks about a “quartet of moderates” as the region’s only hope.