Law isn’t a slogan, it is a constraint. On Feb 28, the United States and Israel called the campaign Operation Epic Fury, but a codename does not answer the Article 51 test of necessity and proportionality. Striking leadership targets around Tehran is not the same thing as intercepting an incoming missile, and the line matters. Counterargument: defenders say Iran’s missile forces and air-defense grids create an imminent danger, so delay is catastrophic. Who sets the objectives, and who owns the clock? Even if you accept that premise, the War Powers Resolution and basic democratic accountability still require clear aims, a timetable, and disclosure beyond chest-thumping. Escalation risk is not an emotional worry, it is a predictable function of incentives and pride. When the UN Security Council becomes a theater of vetoes, the battlefield becomes the policy. If this ends with Hormuz disruption and sanctions spirals, the so-called precision will look like self-inflicted damage.