The Baghdad Post, 17 June 2017 – The regime in Tehran is seeking vehemently to implement its plots aimed at shaking the whole region. It uses militias in several countries; foremost of them are Iraq, Syria and Yemen.
But recently, a plan has emerged whereby the regime is seeking to create a route from Damascus to Tehran. Using a strategic point at the Syrian-Iraqi-Jordanian borders, the Iranian militias are carrying out a high-stakes gamble for this dream to be achieved.
The secret lies in al-Tanf crossing, insiders told the Baghdad Post, noting it is the Mullah regime’s passport for domination in the area.
This crossing is very important in the military strategic aspects. It is located at an area falling administratively under the authorities of Homs province.
It is 240 kilometers away from Palmyra. And it is one of several crossings on the Syrian-Iraqi borders such as Abukamal in the eastern province of Deir al-Zour.
On the plot, experts told the Baghdad Post that Iran seeks to deploy militias in al-Tanf to target Jordan.
Jordan is an important Arab country. So Iran seeks to target it, they added.
Strategic importance
Strategists say al-Tanf area is of utmost importance for the Mullah regime forces deployed to Syria.
But they also argue that Iran will not be able to control the area, as the US under president Donald Trump will not allow them to do this.
For the US, Iran’s taking control of al-Tanf is a red line, they explained, adding if Iran managed to occupy this area, it will impose full control a key strategic spot in the region.
Battle over al-Tanf area will rage more and more, especially after the end of the offensive to retake the ISIS-held Raqqah.
For Jordan, strategists also say the kingdom is ramping up military enforcements along the 370-kilometer borders.
They added:”Jordan wants neither terror groups nor sectarian militias on the other side of the borders. Therefore, the Jordanian army is on alert for the seventh consecutive year to defend national security of Amman until settling the Syrian dispute.”
Suleimani
Commander of Iran’s Quds Force of the IRGC Qassem Suleimani was spotted on the Syrian-Iraqi borders on Monday.
He appeared accompanied by recruits of al-Fatmyoun Brigade, who fight alongside Assad forces in the desert.
Iraqi sources were quoted by al-Sharq al-Awast newspaper as saying Suleimani came to the borders escorted with thousands of IRGC militiamen and Fatmyoun Brigade recruits.
This step is preclude to opening Tehran-Damascus corridor, they said.
Assad forces and other militias declared last Saturday it controlled large swaths of land northeast of al-Tanf crossing on the Syrian-Iraqi borders.
Thousands of militiamen
Anadolu news agency said in a report that there are 18,000 militiamen sent by Iran into Syria.
The agency quoted local sources as saying that 9, 000 Shiite militiamen participate in the battles of the southern countryside of Aleppo, while about 5,000 of them are deployed to the provinces of Daraa, Damascus and Quneitra 4,000 of them are stationed in half in both Homs and Lattakia countryside.
It noted that more than 50 percent of Shiite operatives are affiliated with Hezbollah terrorists, which began its intervention in Syria in late 2012
The total number of Hezbollah terrorist operatives throughout Syria is about 10,000, and the terror group lost many of its militiamen during the clashes they fought against the Syrian opposition.
Sources in the Syrian opposition say that the number of Hezbollah operatives killed in Syria is estimated at thousands, and that Hussein al-Hajj, nicknamed “Abu Mohammed,” who was killed on October 10, 2015 in Hama province, is the most prominent commander of the terror group to be killed in Syria.
The Iraqi Shiite militias in Syria are the second-biggest in number, as most of these elements came from the provinces of Baghdad, Najaf and Basra, and the most prominent Iraqi Shiite factions fighting in Syria include the Iraqi Hezbollah, Nujba Movement, militias of Imam Hussein, Imam Ali Brigades, and others.
Dashed hopes
Experts say there is no even the faintest hope for Iran to get into al-Tanf area, citing the strong US presence and its previous warnings.
Frederick C. Hoof, director of the Rafik Hariri Center for Middle East Affairs at the Atlantic Council in Washington and a former US State Department liaison officer with Syrian opposition forces, said: “I think any attack on al-Tnaf crossing by Iranian-backed militias will find a strong and firm response by the US.
“I am not familiar with the rules of engagement now in place for the US ground forces, but I think any attack by Hezbollah and Iran on the area will be totally reckless and unlikely to work.” He added.
The two sides cashed on two occasions before. On May 18, a US jet attacked a convoy of Shiite militiamen who were heading south-easterly along the highway in violation of the 20-kilometer-long de-escalation zone around al-Tanf.
The air strike killed six militiamen and destroyed six vehicles.
On Tuesday, according to an official statement issued by the US-led coalition, a pro-regime force entered de-escalation zone again, and coalition forces opened fire on it.
Two artillery guns and an anti-aircraft were destroyed, according to the statement, which also indicated the destruction of a tank.
Also, US forces moved a missile system to a base in al-Tanf in southern Syria near the border with Iraq and Jordan, Syrian officials said.
Syrian activists confirmed the surge in numbers of US troops there, while a US military spokesman denied a new base was established there.
Two US intelligence sources said Wednesday that the US-based sophisticated rocket-launching system (HEMARS) is now in the desert base, as tensions escalated after US-led coalition forces hit government-backed militias.
Strategists say Iran seeks to harm Jordan by its movements around al-Tanf. But they asserted the US will repel any possible offensive by the Iranian militias in the area.
The US will not let Iran infiltrate the area at any rate. And if it does this, this will not be the beginning of their desired corridor to the Mediterranean, but will mark the end of their project in Syria, they insisted.
