By Stella Youssef
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – Recently, reports said the US is taking steps in Iraq and Syria to block Iranian-backed militias from accessing a crucial border crossing connecting Iraq and Syria after footage of US military convoys circulated the local media in Iraq. Several American observers suggested these movements might mean a change in US policy and objectives in the region.
The US military denied its forces have taken actions to cut off Iranian presence in the region and stressed their main focus is deterring Islamic State (ISIS) threats.
US Army Maj. Gen. Matthew McFarlane told reporters during a phone briefing from Baghdad, “The coalition is not preparing for military operations to cut off anybody except Daesh [IS]. We remain focused on Daesh.”
The al-Qaim-Abu Kamal border crossing, which links Syria and Iraq, is a key access route for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) to deliver weapons and military personnel to the Syrian government forces in areas under its control in eastern Syria.
The Syrian government lost control over Abu Kamal crossing in mid-2012 after the opposition factions took control of the city. In mid-June 2014, ISIS took control of the city and removed the border between Syria and Iraq.
In 2017, Iran entered the western bank of the Euphrates River in Deir ez-Zor Governorate, eastern Syria, to back the Syrian government forces in the fight against ISIS. They controlled the area extending from the city of Deir ez-Zor to the town of Abu Kamal on the Iraqi border.
The US forces maintained a presence in the east of the Euphrates River through the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) since 2015 and in the al-Tanf garrison since 2016 through other US-backed Syrian forces, which is not far from Iranian-backed militias’ posts.
Al-Tanf garrison, located in a geopolitically tense region, has witnessed several attacks launched from posts of Iranian-backed militias deployed in several areas in Syria.
Iran gained more influence in Deir ez-Zor through deploying various militias, including the IRGC and local tribal militias and strengthened its positions, sparking concerns for the US, as other US military bases in eastern Syria were also targeted by Iranian drone strikes.
Irina Tsukerman, analyst at the Arabian Peninsula Institute based in New York, had previously told North Press that “Iran has created a land bridge through that area and deep into Syria used to transport fighters, ammunition, and all sorts of contraband material used to strengthen its military positions in Syria.”
Clearly, Iran wants US forces out of the region as its officials publicly stated several times, considering their presence illegal in Syria.
On Aug. 23, Iran’s envoy for the UN, Amir Saeid Iravani, told the Security Council that “Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity persistently endure grave violations, stemming from both the occupation of certain areas by illegal foreign forces and aggressions by the Israeli regime and terrorist groups”. He continue and called “for the complete withdrawal of all illegal foreign military forces from Syrian territory.”
US officials noted that Iran wants to freely move advanced lethal weapons across Syria to threaten Israel or whoever they disagree with. Over the years, the US made it clear that they will not tolerate any threats to Israel, its closest partner in the Middle East.
On June 21, US Air Force Lieutenant General Alexus Grynkewish said in a briefing, “I can’t speak for the Israelis … but I can tell you that the growing connection between Russia and Iran, and if they are able to open up avenues where Iran is able to push lethal aid through Syria that threatens Israel, that’s certainly a concern for the United States.”
The US does not want Syria to become another base for Iran and Iranian-backed militias similar to Hezbollah in Lebanon on Israel’s northern border that was the source of repeated attacks launched on Israeli territories.
Iran, since the Islamic revolution, has been committed to fulfilling its project of establishing a land corridor stretching from Iran across Iraq and Syria to Lebanon, or also known as the Shiite crescent to attack its ideological nemesis, Israel.
US officials stress that US’ presence in Syria is for the purpose of supporting the fight against ISIS and deterring its resurgence, especially since ISIS sleeper cells show increasing activities in Deir ez-Zor.
ISIS lost its final stronghold in Syria in March 2019. The SDF with the support of the US-led Global Coalition, defeated ISIS after fierce battles in the town of Baghouz in the eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor, bringing an end to the so-called caliphate declared by the terrorist ISIS.
The CENTCOM Media Desk told North Press that the ongoing movements on the Syrian-Iraqi border are a type of replacement that referred to as “a relief in place and transfer of authority.”
The former spokesperson for the US-led Coalition in Iraq, Myles B. Caggins, in an interview with Kurdistan 24, dismissed the rumors and said they have no intention of engaging in a direct conflict with Iran.
“What has happened is we’ve had a normal transition of American troops replacing one group. We had one group from Ohio and they have been replaced by a group from New York. During that transition, we had a temporary increase in the number of troops as the new soldiers came in, old soldiers go out, but there is no desire for the US to have a war with Iran,” he said.