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As ISIS is collapsing in Syria and Iraq, sides involved in the conflicts have increased their efforts in the area of the Syrian-Iraqi border.
Earlier this month, western-backed militant groups, supported by the US-led coalition’s special forces and airpower, increased their activity in southern Syria. The US-led forces advanced in the southern direction and seized Humaymah southeast of the ancient city of Palmyra but failed to reach al-Bukamal, an important border town controlled by ISIS.
US-led forces are pretending to control the whole Syrian-Iraqi border area south of the Euphrates. However, while al-Bukamal remains under the ISIS rule, this is not possible. Southeastern Syria is a desert area with a low number of settlements. Thus, Western-backed militants don’t have a full control even of a chunk of the Syrian-Iraqi border south of Humaymah while they don’t control al-Bukamal.
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Another important target is the government-held city of Deir Ezzor that is under a brutal siege imposed by ISIS terrorists. The Deir Ezzor countryside is full of oil fields and if US-backed forces reach it they would impose control over these important assets. Furthermore, Deir Ezzor and Raqqah remain the only cities, which US-backed forces can capture or partly capture under a pretext of combating terrorists.
Reports that about 150 servicemen of the US and UK special operations forces entered southern Syria in order to support a ‘rebel advance’ against ISIS in the area contribute to the idea that Washington and its allies are going to attempt to do this.
At the same time, Syrian government forces also increased operations in the southeastern Syria desert, capturing a checkpoint at the Zaza crossroad southeast of Palmyra. The checkpoint is located on the road heading to al-Tanf and allows the Syrian army to pose a threat of an advance in this direction. The government forces progress in the area also slows down the US-backed advance in southeastern Syria.
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Meanwhile, the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Units also increased military operations against ISIS, advancing in the Qayrawan area in the direction of the border from the Iraqi side. Last week, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, Deputy Commander of the PMU, announced that the PMU is seeing the Syrian-Iraqi border as a strategic objective of its military operations.
Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis. Click to see the full-size image
The PMU leadership also understands that the control over the border is an important step in combating ISIS and increasing its influence in the region.
According to Iraqi sources and some experts, the PMU is a power that has capabilities to come to power in Iraq after the defeat of ISIS. And the PMU will likely do this despite the opposition of the US-led block.
The PMU is mostly consisting from Arabs that are close by their vision of the situation in the region to the Damascus government. The main goal of the US and its allies is to prevent the situation when the PMU could dominate in Iraq or to build a large buffer zone between Iraq and Syria dividing potential allies.
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The global elites successively oppose to a creation of united Arab entity in the Middle East. Their policy in the region is directly aimed at this and the situation in Syria and Iraq is an example of this long-standing strategy.
In this light, the US-backed militant advance “against ISIS” along the Syrian-Iraqi border is just a tool to achieve some geopolitical goals in the Middle East.
Dont you get it? It’s ALL ABOUT that damn pipeline… The kurds are gonna secure the north, the so called fsa in the south… and they are gonna try and link up at: Deir Ezzor…
It’s whatever the Masonic/Illuminati Game desires. 7 countries in 5 years is of course delayed….due to Benefits of dragging conflicts out For MIC and Opium poppy fields . The Crazed Jews have an agenda,…yet the Masonic Banker side has theirs, Having 100s of years experience of rolling nations over. Syria is like India when all the nations with their East India company’s Piled In to war and pillage. Putin and Trump are playing the game…..they have to ….no exceptions : )
I think the article is rather straightforward.
There is one point I fully disagree :
The PMU is not like the Syrian government in vision and by spirit.
The PMU is, on average, sectarian shia and does NOT share the same vision as Assads mostly secular regime, which is, as I said, mostly secular.
What they do share is a general dislike of sunnis.
You are right that the “vision” is more precise term to show our idea. The “spirit” is removed from the article.
Well, at least the Sunni tribes in the Western Iraqi deserts have the same dislike of ISIS so should welcome the PMU.
SAA consists mainly of sunni muslims so Assad government does not have a general dislike of sunnis. It is important for the general public to understand that the sectarian politics was introduced to Syria from the outside. The sectarian wahhabi ideology is Saudi in origin, and it is used by the CIA to create violent political divisions in target countries by attacking non-sunni groups, and then citing “sectarian violence”.
The only oppositon left was the ones, which is not afraid to die. Thats the secterians. So the only removers also are those.
Normal updating and renewing things was impossible and were asked for/demanded for first – In Years.
My take is that everyone is working together to defeat ISIS.
I realize there are good reasons not to trust the US motives in this, but everything points to it this time. The Donald is holding to his vision that ISIS is a true enemy of the US and must be defeated even though the American Deep State is vehemently opposed to this. President Trump is not that concerned about President Al-Assad, (statements by Sec. of State Tillerson not withstanding, who is trying to appease the “moderate rebels” that the US has been backing till now). With or without a public rapprochement with Russia, President Trump is moving forward with his foreign policy vision. His sharing of intelligence with Russian FM Lavrov is to build confidence that he can be trusted. Israel, et.al., has lost in their desires for a weakened Syria for now over the US’s need to end all of this craziness.
Will be interesting to watch it unfold.
lol ,kumbya, everyone working together lol
u-s and big Isarël are fearing jonction PMU/Hezbollah…
And hindus too
Of the two boarder crossings mentioned in the article, al-Tanf is the most important.
That boarder crossing is between Iraq and Syria, at the extreme Western end of Iraq. Keep in mind that the Iraqi army has recently taken over their side of that boarder crossing. Iraqi Shiite militias are there too. They are waiting for “permission” from Syria to cross the boarder and help out the SAA to open the highway between Damascus and Baghdad (and further east to Tehran).
That is why this is important. That highway could be open within two weeks.
There will then be no need to fly stuff from Iran to Syria. Israel and their neocon US backers will be screwed, with no way to stop this direct link, other than to attack Syria directly, and show their hand, which they cannot do.
This is a very smart move being made by Syria, and it will check mate the US.
Its not about USA. Its about Yourself not treating each other nice and having no intensions as well.
So why should they use that higway at all. It would also make sense take Eufrat from Ramadi and up. That would give Assad free troops not having to fight ISIS.
The entire Deep State/Israeli policy is fundamentally captured by “divide and conquer” doctrine. As long as these countries stay united and work together, despite all the pressures on them, they will win in the end.