March 3, 2013

A video has shown Iraqi troops crossing the borders towards the city of al-Yarubiya in north eastern Syria. After a silence that lasted for around 24 hours, the Iraqi government admitted it was true. Its excuse however was that the war in Syria along the borders has reached Iraqi areas. This is not a convincing excuse since the fighting occurred in the city of Yarubiya itself.

This city is the gateway which Iraq uses to smuggle its exports and Iran's exports to aid the Syrian regime troops. This reminds of what toppled President Saadam Hussein did when he sent his troops to Iran under the excuse of a border dispute and securing Iraqi territory and then ending up with sending his troops to occupy Kuwait.

The entrance of Maliki's forces expanded the war in Syria. It transformed from a proxy war into a direct one to aid the forces of Assad's regime which has been living through an ordeal for 20 months.

A war expanding on Syrian soil is now taking place in the region. There's Assad's entire army, security forces and militias which are supported by forces from Iran and thousands of Hezbollah fighters from Lebanon in addition to Russian experts and consultants. With Maliki's troops invading the border to aid Assad's forces to maintain the control of the border city of Yarubiya, we are confronting a big regional war. Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has recently joined it. He has recently increased his justifications for doing so by vowing that he will not allow the fall of Assad's regime and saying that he informed the Americans that Assad's regime will not fall.

These extremist parties, Iran, Iraq and Hezbollah, unite for the first time in a war like this! A clear war against the Syrian people. Other than receiving refugees, which number has reached half a million, neighboring countries have not done anything to attempt helping the majority which has been targeted by this war for around 20 months.

How Syria threatens Iraq

The new and dangerous development is Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's entrance of the war this week. His move clarifies why he was concerned of giving media speeches paving way to send his troops to the war under the excuse that the fall of the regime in Syria threatens Iraq.

Truth is, Maliki is exaggerating. Iraq is in more danger if it engages in the war than it is by remaining neutral. As for why Maliki involves Iraq in the first war that erupts since the fall of Saddam's regime, the reason is clear...He has become a puppet controlled by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards which is running the war in Syria and defending Assad's regime. Maliki is like Hezbollah's chief in Lebanon. He is obliged to support Iran's number one ally, Bashar al-Assad, because the Iranians have enough power to eliminate or appoint leaders in Iraq and in Hezbollah.

Maliki has been secretly supporting Iranian efforts in Syria for the past two years by sending fuel, funds and arms to Assad's regime. He allowed the Iranians to transfer fighters and weapons through Iraqi airspace and land. The last American official statement showed the extent of disappointment by the actions of the old ally Maliki. "We have several times informed the Iraqi government that we object to Iranian flights via Iraqi airspace, and we have voiced our suspicions (that these airplanes) carry weapons on board but the Iraqi government (which pledged to search them) has searched airplanes only two times in October."

Maliki has currently become like Hassan Nasrallah. He cannot but obey the influential Iranian Revolutionary Guards which does not hesitate to commit crimes to implement its threats. This is a topic I will discuss in another article.

This article was first published in Asharq al-Awsat on March 3, 2013


Source