The greatest events of December and late November were the defeat of ISIS in Syria and Iraq. After years of struggle, while the US-backed invasion took place, a portion of the opposition to the government of Bashar Al-Assad in ISIS have been defeated. The notorious terrorist group funded by the US, Israel, and Saudi Arabia, was defeated when the last of their strongholds were raided and destroyed.

While this news is great, there is still a downside to the victory. “Russian Security Council Secretary, Nikolai Patrushev, warned that the terrorists of Daesh (ISIS) are fleeing from Syria and Iraq to other countries.”[1] The terrorist force is looking to regroup in other countries where they can organize to begin another offensive against the enemies of the US, Israel, and Saudi Arabia.

“He noted that Daesh militants are positioned in Afghanistan, where they can infiltrate into Iran, China, India, Central Asia and Russia, pointing out that the leaders of terrorists are changing their tactics by creating sleeper cells in different countries that can move independently.” [2]

It seems likely that they will be directed to new places by the US. Most likely they’ll be sent to places where the US can justify intervention or continued intervention.

ISIS appearing in Afghanistan is wholly to the benefit of NATO imperialism. While many countries, including the US, have been cutting back on troops stationed in the country – this influx of ISIS fighters is the justification needed to send in more troops in opposition to the public opinion of the people in the imperialist countries. Defeating ISIS has been a stated goal of the imperialist powers after all. After more than a decade of war, NATO forces are no closer to defeating the Taliban.

Perhaps more interestingly, these forces may end up in Iran. In my opinion, I think this is a likely place for them to go. The US would certainly jump on the opportunity to accuse Iran of aiding ISIS as a justification for placing more sanctions on them. Behind the scenes, there’s little doubt that the US will be using ISIS to attack Iran, a measure that is intended to work hand-in-hand with sanctions.

This situation would be different. Iran is a mostly developed country with infrastructure up and running and an intelligence apparatus fully functional. ISIS would have a great fight on their hands against the Iranian state. But we’ve seen how effective ISIS has been against the most developed imperialist powers in the West – despite their overreaching surveillance systems. In my opinion, ISIS will most probably act as sleeper cell agents which will activate with little-to-no contact from a larger body. One must not forget that an important goal in the Middle East has been the destabilization of Iran, one of the few countries left not under the control of the US.

With formal US military operations winding down in Syria and Iraq, this would be a good time to shift focus towards Iran.

Sources:

[1] https://sana.sy/en/?p=122553

[2] Ibid.