Last week, Iran-backed militias launched a drone and rocket attack on the American military base in al-Tanf, Syria. The base, located at a strategic point near the border with Jordan and Iraq, was established in 2016 during the fight against Islamic State, and serves as a check on Russian and Iranian ambitions to extend their influence into southeastern Syria. Until now, Iranian proxies have frequently attacked U.S. positions in Iraq, but stayed away from al-Tanf. Yoni Ben Menachem examines the strike’s implications:
The barrage was carried out using five drones of the pro-Iranian militias in the region. Three drones flew from Syria, and another two came from Iraq, indicating the high coordination and accuracy of the pro-Iranian militias in the operation of attack drones. According to various assessments in the United States and Israel, the attack on the al-Tanf base was an Iranian response to two raids last week on Iranian targets in Syria attributed to Israel in the area of Homs and Palmyra.
Iran appears to be changing its retaliation strategy regarding Israeli attacks on Iranian targets in Syrian territory. . . . Iran, Syria, and Russia oppose the presence of the Americans on Syrian territory. The barrage against the base in al-Tanf was intended to send messages to Israel and the United States and to expedite the American military withdrawal from Syria.
The Iranian action against the al-Tanf base comes as Russia and Turkey continue political efforts to bring about a full U.S. withdrawal from Syria. Turkey claims that the U.S. military in Syria protects the Kurds, while Syria claims that the U.S. military presence is an “occupation.” . . . Following the attack on the al-Tanf base, Washington must carefully consider the policies it has adopted recently, which have eased the economic sanctions imposed on Syria.
Read more on Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs: https://jcpa.org/irans-bellicose-message-to-the-united-states-and-israel/