The deal is done. The ink is dry. And now the question hangs over Westminster like a fog on the Thames: what was it all for?
Chris Bowen, the US diplomat who helped broker the new Iran agreement, has done what the White House could not. He has put the conflict in stark terms. "The deal," he said, "raises an inescapable question of what the war was for."
That question is now being fired across the Commons. MPs are demanding answers. A full inquiry. Not just a select committee. Something with teeth. A judge. A public hearing. The works.
The mood is sour. Backbenchers who voted for the Iraq War, the Libya intervention, the whole sorry saga, are now nursing deep regret. They feel misled. They want to know who knew what, and when.
Downing Street is on the back foot. The PM's spokesman offered platitudes about "lessons learned" and "looking forward, not back." That won't wash. Not today.
There is a smell of panic in the air. Ministers are avoiding eye contact. The Whips' Office is working overtime. They fear a rebellion. A big one.
Let us recap the timeline. In 2003, the US and UK invaded Iran. The pretext? Weapons of mass destruction. None found. The real reason? Regime change. The result? Chaos. Thousands dead. A shattered region.
Now, after years of sanctions and stalemate, a deal. One that essentially legitimises the regime we tried to topple. One that lifts restrictions on oil exports. One that sees the US and Iran shake hands while the bodies of British soldiers still lie in Iranian soil.
Labour is circling. Sir Keir Starmer has not yet called for an inquiry, but his shadow foreign secretary is sharpening her tongue. "The government must explain how this deal serves British interests," she said. That is code for: you sold us out.
The Liberal Democrats are bolder. Ed Davey wants a full public inquiry. "The public deserve the truth," he said. Simple. Effective. He will get the headlines.
And what of the Tory base? The 1922 Committee is restless. Many MPs won their seats on a promise of strength. Now they look like weaklings. They fear Ukip. They fear Reform. They fear their own voters.
There is talk of a coordinated resignation letter. A dozen MPs ready to pull the trigger. But will they? They are loyalists. For now. But the mood can turn in an instant.
The foreign secretary is due to make a statement this afternoon. He will defend the deal. He will talk about de-escalation and diplomacy. He will not mention the war. That is a mistake. The war is the only thing anyone wants to talk about.
Bowen's words are a dagger. They cut through the spin. They expose the lie. The war was never about security. It was about power. And now that power has been swapped for a photo opportunity and a press release.
The inquiry will happen. It is a matter of when, not if. The question is how many careers it will destroy. How many reputations will be shredded. How many secrets will be dragged into the light.
This is not a story that will fade. It has legs. It has anger. It has the scent of blood.
We are watching a political drama unfold. The curtain is rising on the second act. And the stage is set for a reckoning.
More as we have it.
