Posted on 07/13/2017 12:55:40 PM PDT by Lorianne
U.S. troops based in Syria's southeastern desert have expanded their footprint, rebels there say, increasing the risk of direct ground confrontation between the Americans and Iran-backed pro-government forces.
U.S. special forces have been based since last year at Tanf, a strategic Syrian highway border crossing with Iraq, where the Americans have assisted rebels trying to recapture territory from fleeing Islamic State fighters.
The U.S.-backed Syrian rebels in the area are in competition with pro-government forces who are also trying to recapture territory from Islamic State.
On several occasions in recent weeks, warplanes of the U.S.-led coalition have struck pro-government forces to prevent them advancing, in what Washington has described as self defense.
Abu al-Atheer, military spokesman for the U.S.-backed Maghawir al-Thawra rebel group, told Reuters U.S. forces had spread from their initial location at Tanf to set up a second base at Zakf, around 60-70 km (40-50 miles) to the northeast.
Regional intelligence sources told Reuters the U.S. military moved in the last few days a new long-range rocket launcher system from Jordan to Tanf, for the first time in southern Syria stepping up its presence in the area.
They said the (High Mobility Artillery Rocket System) - HIMARS which can fire missiles as far as 300km had been deployed for the first time in southern Syria. They had been previously used to strike militants from positions in Turkey and Jordan.
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
Our rebels are Sunni terrorist. We have no business attacking Syrian government forces. Our nutty neocon generals have only one goal, remove Assad.
Isis is a sideshow.
Crap, we’re allied now with al-Qaeda affiliated “rebels” to replace ISIS.
WTF are our deep staters doing now?
What a mess. One day the inevitable “fog of war” incident will happen.
“U.S. troops... have expanded their footprint... increasing the risk of direct ground confrontation between the Americans and Iran-backed pro-government forces.”
...or deterring a direct confrontation between Iranian and American surrogates - if the Iranians think that they CAN’T get away with seizing a a complete route from Iran to the Mediterranean, for pipeline and military resupply, to make the Mullahs a nuclear-armed superpower, and pick off all our allies in the region.
Weakness is the surest provocation, when dealing with expansionist tyrants like Khamenei.
SDF Kurds to come down the Euphrates River Valley from the North, while Arab militias trained in Jordan sweep along the Iraqi border from the South, to close the door on Iran’s desired “Shia Crescent”.
Meanwhile, Iran is sending their PMU militias in Iraq at the border from the East, and trying to send their other Shi’ite mercenary militias at it from the West in Syria. Assad has some of his best remaining troops (Tiger Forces) heading toward Deir ez Zour across the desert, to grab the oil fields, and potentially cut off the the SDF Kurds from closing the door from the North at Deir ez Zour.
It is a race for the end game, as the ISIS caliphate collapses. Leaving everything for Iran was Obama’s approach. I think we will see an effort to contain Iran this time.
Some of the SDF has been moving down the Euphrates for a while. I’ve seen maps for almost a week indicating their progress.
And Erdogan the Islamist has positioned many troops on border of Turkey and Syria at Efrin. Saw photo’s this morning.
Erdogan had best be cautious he may get more than he anticipates. Motivation is extreme. He will also get lots of flack from Europe because of the 500,000 refuges that are housed there.
But “the Dog” has no concern for civilians as long as they are Kurds or Ezidi’s.
It will be interesting to see what the Kemalist do with this. They are very unhappy with him and 2 million demonstrators is a lot.
What will restrain Iran? Nothing short of shooting them.
Check it out:
Qarah Qawzaq, Syria
36.649576 38.301993
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