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Iran sending Shi'ite militias to create stronghold on Iraq-Syria border through which the Islamic Republic can send forces, weapons and supplies to Assad regime and Hezbollah in Lebanon

The most important strategic development in the Middle East these days isnt the Trump administrations decision, which was foreseen, not to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Intelligence services in Israel and the region are now following events along the Syria-Iraq border.

In both countries, Shiite militias, backed by Iran, are moving toward the border. If they can come together on both sides of the frontier and create a band of control, a longtime Iranian aspiration will be fulfilled: to establish a land corridor through which the Iranians can freely move forces, weapons and supplies from Tehran through Iraq to the Assad regime in Syria, and even west of there to Hezbollah in Lebanon.

The creation of this contiguity would follow an achievement chalked up by the Iran-led axis in the region thanks to Russian intervention for the Assad regime in the Syrian civil war. Since the final surrender of the rebel forces in Aleppo in northern Syria last December, the regime and its supporters have slowly expanded their hold on various parts of Syria.

At the same time, the Iranians, through local Shiite militias, are helping the United States and Iraqi government fight the Islamic State around the Iraqi city of Mosul. Moving ISIS away from the border lets the Tehran-backed militias take strategic territory in the desert area west of Mosul near the Syrian border.

About a week ago, Shitite militias took over a number of villages around the town of Baaj on the Iraqi side of the border, pushing out Islamic fighters. The militias are accompanied by Iranian advisers and instructors. Reuters reported that the conquest of the villages will let the Iranians and their supporters reopen a good portion of the main road connecting Baghdad to the areas under Assads control in Syria. For complete territorial contiguity, Assads forces must still advance on the Syrian side in the area where the Kurdish militias are operating, supported by the United States.

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The Syria-Iraq border is at the moment the most important place in the region. Thats where the regional picture will be determined, Chagai Tzuriel, director general of the Intelligence Affairs Ministry, told Haaretz over the weekend. Tzuriel, a former head of research in the Mossad, added that the creation of territorial contiguity under Iranian influence changes the strategic balance in the Middle East. According to Tzuriel, Iran, with the assistance of the Shiite militias and the cooperation of other forces, continues to take steps whose goal is strengthening its hold in Syria.

Tzuriel said that alongside their operations on the Iraqi-Syrian border, the Iranians have been in contact with the Assad regime to lease a port in northwestern Syria. This would give Iran a foothold on the Mediterranean coast something Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned about on his visit to Moscow in March.

The stabilizing of the Assad regime thanks to Russian military support, along with the daily circus around U.S. President Donald Trump, have reduced media coverage of events in Syria. But Syria is the main arena of conflict, where the struggles between the superpowers are being waged and temporary or long-term alliances are being formed.

In Trumps visit to Riyadh last month, where he signed a huge deal to sell American weapons to the Saudis, he expressed support for the Gulf states and warned against Irans intentions. But actually it seems Iran is advancing step by step toward its strategic goals.

For now, its not clear whether the new administration in Washington plans to take steps beyond rhetoric to halt Irans influence. Most of the U.S. militarys moves in the region are directed against the Islamic State, and in Trumps speeches, he often focuses on the Iranian dangers, especially in the context of the recent terror attacks by Islamic extremists in Britain in Manchester and before that in London.

On May 18, in an unusual move, the U.S. Air Force attacked militias identified with the Assad regime when they approached a base near Tanf on the Syria-Jordan border. U.S. special forces are operating in the area, alongside Syrian rebel forces that maintain a relationship with the Americans. The bombing seems to have been an isolated event that does not reflect a greater degree of commitment by Washington or a willingness to operate methodically in this region.

Israels statements on Syria mainly involve events closer to home a lack of stability near the Jordanian-Syrian-Israeli border and what seems to be the Syrian regimes attempts to gradually restore control along its border with Israel in the Golan Heights. Israel has already stated its opposition to the arrival of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and Hezbollah fighters to the Golan if Syria is successful in its efforts.

Most of the Israeli attention is on an area that now has its own Hebrew acronym that translates as R.S.S. (region of southern Syria). But it seems that east of there, on the Syria-Iraq border, in an area that could also affect Jordan, a new reality is coming into being with implications that could affect the region in the coming years. At the moment at least, its the Iranians who are dictating this reality, while the other parties are watching from afar and still trying to draw conclusions.

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Iran Striving for Land Corridor From Tehran to Beirut - Haaretz

Qatargas, the world's largest exporter of liquefied natural gas, reassures Japan, the world's largest importer, that Gulf state rift will not effect supply

Japan's JERA Co, the world's biggest buyer of liquefied naturalgas, said on Monday it has been informed byQatargasthat there will be no impact on LNG supplies after several Middle East countries cut ties withQatar.

There would be "no conceivable impact on LNG supplies" from the rift, JERA said in a statement, adding "this is also a geopolitical issue in the Middle East and there is a possibility that this could be closely related to the energy market, so we will continue to keep watch on the movements."

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Qataris the world's biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas, while Japan is the largest importer, taking in about one-third of global shipments.

Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain severed their ties withQataron Monday, accusing it of supporting terrorism, opening up the worst rift in years among some of the most powerful states in the Arab world.

Qatar-Iran cooperation

In April 2017, Qatar lifted a self-imposed ban on developing the world's biggest natural gas in an attempt to stave off an expected rise in competition.

Iranian official blasts Gulf states over Qatar: Cutting ties 'not a way to resolve crisis'|Gulf states' break with Qatar won't affect fight against ISIS, says Tillerson<<

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At the time the LNG market was undergoing huge changes as the biggest ever flood of new supply hit the market, with volumes coming mainly from the United States and Australia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin also was aiming to become the world's largest LNG producer.

Qatar had declared a moratorium in 2005 on the development of the North Field, which it shares with Iran, to give Doha time to study the impact on the reservoir from a rapid rise in output.

The flurry of liquified natural gas production has resulted in global installed LNG capacity of over 300 million tons a year, while only around 268 million tons of LNG were traded in 2016, Thomson Reuters data shows.

Iran's top priority

Iran, which suffers severe domestic gas shortages, has made a rapid increase in production from South Pars a top priority and signed a preliminary deal with France's Total in November 2016 to develop its South Pars II project.

Iran's oil minister also vowed this March to ramp up production of its part of the shared field.

"Iran's gas production in South Pars can exceed Qatar's before the end of new Iranian year [ending March 20, 2018]," Zanganeh was quoted as saying by Tasnim news agency.

Total was the first Western energy company to sign a major deal with Tehran since the lifting of international sanctions.

Qatar Petroleum's Chief Executive Saad al-Kaabisaid the decision to lift the moratorium was not prompted by Iran's plan to develop its part of the shared field.

"What we are doing today is something completely new and we will in future of course ... share information on this with them [Iran]."

The economy of Qatar, a future World Cup host with a population of 2.6 million, has been pressured by the global oil slump and in 2015 QP dismissed thousands of workers and has earmarked a number of assets for divestment.

QP is merging two LNG divisions, Qatargas and RasGas, to save hundreds of millions of dollars.

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The Qatar-Iran Gas Field Behind the Diplomatic War in the Middle East - Haaretz

An aerial view of high-rise buildings emerging through fog covering the skyline of Doha in Qatar. According to media reports, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates cut off diplomatic ties with Qatar. (Yoan Valat/EPA/Newscom)

Mideast: To many in the diplomatic world, the sudden decision by five countries, led by Saudi Arabia, to cut diplomatic and commercial ties with small, wealthy and energy-rich Qatar was as stunning as it was perplexing. Maybe it shouldn't be.

Coming on the heels of President Trump's visit to the Mideast, the move by Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Yemen to isolate Qatar makes at least some sense. During his trip, Trump made clear that he wanted to forge an alliance of the willing in the region to counter Iran's growing influence and nuclear threat. He got his wish.

The Saudis, who are especially vulnerable to Iran's threat, eagerly led the Sunni group of nations that had coalesced to meet Shiite Iran's challenge. And it seemed as if Qatar, which is itself Sunni, was part of the group.

That is, until last week, when Qatar's Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani angered the Saudis by congratulating Iran's President Hassan Rouhani for being re-elected. That was bad enough; but, as the Financial Times reported, Qatar had also paid an al-Qaida group and Iran upward of $1 billion in a hostage deal to achieve the release of 26 Qatari royal family members who had been captured during a hunting trip in southern Iraq.

As part of the deal, dozens of militants captured by jihadis in Syria were also let go.

Quoting both leaders of militant groups and government officials in the region, the Financial Times wrote: "By their telling, Qatar paid off two of the most frequently blacklisted forces of the Middle East in one fell swoop: an al-Qaida affiliate fighting in Syria and Iranian security officials."

That was too much for the Saudis and the others. They gave Qataris in their countries two weeks to leave, canceled flights between their countries and announced that they would close the border with Qatar a potentially devastating blow, given that Qatar's only land border is with the Saudis.

The power-play against Qatar one of the world's largest natural gas producers was clearly directed at Iran. The Sunni Arab countries that make up most of the Middle East fear Iran fomenting even more trouble and terrorism in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, eastern Saudi Arabia and on the West Bank and in Gaza. And now, they're convinced they have an American president who will back them.

Trump has shown himself to be a foe of Iran, and with good reason.

The Obama administration's eight years of coddling brought only more meddling by Tehran's mullahs in the Mideast, more support of terrorism, and an expanding nuclear program that many defense experts believe is on the verge of a usable nuclear weapon. With its increasingly capable missile systems, Iran will soon be able to terrorize the entire Mideast, and even potentially launch nuclear attacks against the heart of Europe.

As such, isolating Iran, which is what the move against Qatar is meant to do, is a good idea. We wanted a coalition of the willing to battle Iran's radical, West-hating regime, and we've got one. But now it seems to be breaking apart.

Picking sides is always tricky in the Mideast, where the complex web of religions, tribal allegiances, national interests and ethnic identities make most alliances at best temporary, and at worst delusional.The Saudi-led move to force Qatar back into the anti-Iran fold could be a problem for the U.S.

Sure, the Saudis are buying $300 billion in defense goods from the U.S. following Trump's visit, and have often been allies in the fractious Mideast. But the Saudis also have encouraged and financed extremism in Europe, the Mideast and the U.S. And it has provided money to the radical and dangerous Islamic State, along with other jihadist and terrorist groups in the region.

Likewise, Qatar's sprawling al-Udeid military facility, where 11,000 American military personnel are stationed, is the largest U.S. airbase in the Mideast and provides a major strategic foothold for the U.S. in the region. But, like the Saudis, Qatar has aided and financially supported the Muslim brotherhood, Hamas and al-Qaida, even letting some al-Qaida financiers live openly in the emirate, according to 2014 testimony by U.S. Treasury Undersecretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence David Cohen.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has suggested that he'll let the Sunni members of the anti-Iran coalition solve their disputes themselves. He's right to do so. The U.S. should avoid playing puppetmaster. And lest we forget, remember our own President Obama paid $1.7 billion in ransom money to the terrorist Iran regime, so it's tough to criticize Qatar.

Rather than mediating regional disputes, we should focus on the growing threat of terrorism around the world.As the attacks on Manchester and London show, radical Islam is a real and growing threat to our way of life. And unfortunately, not just Iran, but Qatar and Saudi Arabia have been implicated in that.

So while we play the great Mideast chess game, the U.S. should not forget its duty to battle radical Islam everywhere it appears. That means while we must forcefully confront No. 1 terrorist threat Iran, we will some day also have to confront our "friends" the Saudis and Qataris.

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Iran, Qatar, Saudi Arabia And Trump Play The Mideast's 3D Chess Game - Investor's Business Daily

SOUTHWEST ASIA, June 5, 2017 U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria yesterday, conducting 23 strikes consisting of 70 engagements, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

In Syria, coalition military forces conducted 20 strikes consisting of 38 engagements against ISIS targets:

-- Near Abu Kamal, two strikes destroyed an ISIS wellhead and an ISIS oil manifold.

-- Near Dayr Az Zawr, six strikes destroyed 90 ISIS oil barrels, 10 ISIS oil refinery stills, five vehicles, four ISIS oil separation tanks and three ISIS wellheads.

-- Near Raqqa, 11 strikes engaged nine ISIS tactical units and destroyed four fighting positions and five vehicles.

-- Near Tanf, a strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed two tactical vehicles and two ISIS vehicles.

Strikes in Iraq

In Iraq, coalition military forces conducted three strikes consisting of 32 engagements against ISIS targets:

-- Near Mosul, three strikes engaged two ISIS tactical units; destroyed 15 fighting positions, two rocket-propelled-grenade systems, two medium machine guns, an ISIS tactical vehicle and an ISIS staging area; damaged six fighting positions and a vehicle-borne bomb; and suppressed an ISIS tactical unit.

June 3 Strikes

Additionally, five strikes were conducted in Syria and Iraq on June 3 that closed within the last 24 hours:

-- Near Raqqa, Syria, three strikes engaged six ISIS tactical units, destroyed 10 fighting positions and damaged an ISIS-held building.

-- Near Mosul, Iraq, two strikes engaged two ISIS tactical units; destroyed 14 fighting positions, a vehicle-borne bomb, a vehicle-borne-bomb staging area and a supply route; and suppressed a fighting position.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

These strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to destroy ISIS in Iraq and Syria. The destruction of ISIS targets in Iraq and Syria also further limits the group's ability to project terror and conduct external operations throughout the region and the rest of the world, task force officials said.

The list above contains all strikes conducted by fighter, attack, bomber, rotary-wing or remotely piloted aircraft; rocket-propelled artillery; and some ground-based tactical artillery when fired on planned targets, officials noted.

Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike, they added. A strike, as defined by the coalition, refers to one or more kinetic engagements that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single or cumulative effect.

For example, task force officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIS vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against a group of ISIS-held buildings and weapon systems in a compound, having the cumulative effect of making that facility harder or impossible to use. Strike assessments are based on initial reports and may be refined, officials said.

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Strikes Continue Against ISIS Targets in Iraq, Syria - Department of Defense

Uber has delayed a previously-scheduled discussion with its employees about the workplace culture report it commissioned after allegations of sexual harassment and gender discrimination, Axios has learned from multiple sources.

The investigation had been led by former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, and submitted last Wednesday to a subcommittee of Uber's board of directors. Many employees had been told to expect details during the company's weekly all-hands meeting on Tuesday (i.e., tomorrow), but word just came down that such information would not yet be forthcoming.

What happened? Uber PR declined to discuss the change in plans, but it's possible that the timing was affected by CEO Travis Kalanick's recent family tragedy.

Why it matters: Uber's aggressive reputation took a particularly ugly turn in February, when former site reliability engineer Susan Fowler published a detailed account of sexual harassment, discrimination, and Uber's refusal to address her complaints. Holder's report is expected to address these claims, plus broader issues of workplace inclusion and diversity. It also will be viewed in many quarters as a stand-in for Silicon Valley tech companies, as a whole.

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ISIS surrenders another key town in Iraq - Axios