Why is Iran ''Openly'' Announcing its Presence in Syria?
18 May 2016By Tariq Alhomayed
The deputy coordinator of the Iranian Army's Ground Forces General Amir-Ali
Arasteh announced that his country will send ''special forces from Brigade 65
and other units to Syria to work as advisers'' and added that Iran may decide
at some point to use special forces and snipers as military advisers in Iraq
and Syria. So why is Iran ''openly'' admitting its involvement in Syria now?
It is known that Tehran has mercenaries and militias working for it. These
include Hezbollah terrorists and forces of the Revolutionary Guards' units
that fight in support of the criminal Bashar Al-Assad. However, Iran has
always denied this and its role in Syria has been shamefully overlooked by
western media. The Obama administration has also overlooked Tehran's
villainous role in supporting the criminal of Damascus, and before that its
supporters in Iraq. So why is Iran publicly announcing its deployment of
troops to Syria? I think there are three reasons.
The first reason is the Russian ''declaration'' of withdrawal from Syria. The
Russian announcement means the exposure of Assad, and Iran is trying to say
that it will take Russia's place and protect the criminal of Damascus. This is
not a message for Assad only, but for all supporters of Iran in the region.
The second reason is the recent leak about the Russian – American agreement on
the need for Assad's departure. Despite all the denials, what is clear is that
Iran does not trust Russian – American positions. Tehran knows that the Moscow
– Washington agreement will be imposed on it because their interests are
bigger and more important than Iran and its agents who are merely pawns on a
chessboard.
The third reason for Iran's announcement that it is sending special forces to
Syria is the revelation that the Obama administration is considering a plan to
dramatically increase the number of US special forces sent to Syria with the
expectation that this will accelerate the gains that have been recently
achieved against ISIS, especially after the Al-Nusra Front spokesman was
killed in a US airstrike which shows that Moscow and Washington are moving
rapidly to clean up the scene of terrorist leaders.
The next step is the political transition and this is confirmed by Russia's
calls for Assad's negotiators to ''show flexibility'' last Monday. All of this
pushed Iran to announce its intervention in Syria so that the Russians notice
their presence and that they are not ignored in any anticipated agreement. The
announcement also forced Obama, who is known for being indecisive, to rethink
his calculations, especially after he changed his mind when Assad crossed the
red line. More importantly, Iran wants to tell its agents in the region that
it will not abandon them. This is an interpretation of the public Iranian
announcement that it is intervening in Syria, and these times are full of
surprises!
Tariq Alhomayed is the former editor-in-chief of Asharq Al-Awsat. Mr.
Alhomyed has been a guest analyst and commentator on numerous news and current
affair programs, and during his distinguished career has held numerous
positions at Asharq Al-Awsat, amongst other newspapers. Notably, he was the
first journalist to interview Osama Bin Ladin's mother. Mr. Alhomayed holds a
bachelor's degree in media studies from King Abdul Aziz University in Jeddah.
He is based in London.
©
EsinIslam.Com
Add Comments