Make Iran pay. Literally.

One thing is clear: the resolution to the Iranian crisis will come in the form of a detailed agreement – or, as President Trump likes to call it, a deal. At the time of writing, it’s too soon to predict when that deal will be finalized, but it will eventually come.

And any deal, especially with one of the most brutal regimes in modern history, one with a well-documented record of global deception and manipulation, must include a strong enforcement mechanism. I propose that instead of merely repeating the old formula of more supervision and more sanctions, we introduce something new: a clear price tag for violations. In simple terms: you break it, you pay for it.

A few days ago, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu outlined three goals for this campaign. The first two are familiar: halting Iran’s nuclear program and delivering a decisive blow to its advanced missile program, which threatens not only the Middle East but Europe and the United States as well. The third goal, though not yet widely emphasized, is equally vital: dismantling the Iranian-led proxy terror network – commonly referred to as “the axis” – once and for all.

As President Trump put it, Iran is the world’s number one state sponsor of terrorism. It lives, breathes, and exports terror. For decades, Iran has not only perpetrated acts of terror directly, but has also mastered the strategy of proxy warfare – maintaining the illusion of “clean hands” while financing, training, and directing terrorist organizations to carry out its dirty work. Thousands of lives have been lost, including more than 1,000 Americans. Its proxies, such as the Houthis, have inflicted tremendous economic damage, such as the blockade of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a crucial maritime gateway to the Suez Canal.

So, how do we stop the terror? How do we ensure Iran has no incentive to launch new threats? The answer is simple: make them pay for every act of terror – for the damage inflicted by their proxies, and for any future attack for which they are responsible.

This isn’t a novel idea. In 2003, Libya agreed to pay $2.7 billion in compensation to the families of the 270 victims of the Lockerbie bombing, as part of a deal to lift international sanctions. Similarly, Sudan agreed to compensate victims of the 1998 US embassy bombings in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam (carried out by al-Qaeda) in order to be removed from the U.S. State Sponsors of Terrorism list.

American courts have already issued judgments totaling billions of dollars against Iran and its proxies, including Hezbollah and Hamas. Any future agreement with Iran must resolve the payment of those existing judgments and establish a mechanism, such as a dedicated victims’ compensation fund, financed by Iran, to address future claims.

In this way, Iran would be forced to pay both for past acts of terrorism and for any future involvement in such crimes, creating a real and tangible deterrent.

Of the three central goals in this campaign, stopping Iranian-sponsored terrorism may well be the most urgent and critical to regional stability. So many innocent people in so many countries have been killed in Iran’s decades-long global terror campaign. While other safeguards and enforcement mechanisms will be necessary, one thing is clear: any deal must make terror costly for Iran.

Terror must come with a price.