Islamic State May Collapse in Syria. Now the U.S. Must Prevent Its Replacement by the Islamic Republic

Since May, American forces in Syria have attacked a supply convoy of Iranian troops and Iran-backed militias and shot down two Iranian drones and one Syrian fighter jet. In each of these cases, Iran and its allies had first violated the U.S. zone of operations established by agreement with Russia; in two cases, aircraft directly attacked American troops. Tehran also fired ballistic missiles at Islamic State (IS) targets in the Euphrates River Valley, a move, Nader Uskowi writes, “signaling to all [Iran’s] opponents, including the United States and its allies, its intention to compete in the area after the Islamic State falls.” Thus, Uskowi argues, as IS is on the verge of crumbling, Washington must seek to thwart Iran’s plan to consolidate its influence throughout Syria: