Iran and US Stand Off on Iraq’s Desert Front
10.02.2018 at 09:29pm
Iran and US Stand Off on Iraq’s Desert Front by Richard Spencer – The Times
A 12-mile stretch of the Iraq-Syria border has become the epicentre of a battle between Iran and the United States for control of the Middle East.
Militias backed by Iran have taken control of territory on the Iraqi side of the frontier and just over the border in Syria stands a military base containing thousands of Shia fighters loyal to Tehran, according to analysts.
Their presence marks a key staging post on the so-called “Shia crescent” of influence from Tehran, across Shia areas of Iraq, through Syria to the Israeli border and Hezbollah-controlled southern Lebanon…
