>>507638262 (OP)Syria and Iraq aren’t defacto countries anymore. They are territories ruled by several different warlords and ethnic groups that don’t even pay lipservice to the Israeli-installed powerless “leadership” in Bagdad/Damascus. The only contest against Iranian forces could come from Israeli/Allied units in those places, but one of the major forces (USA) has refused to, and the other (Israel) is busy fighting local insurgents and keeping the warlords and ethnic groups in line.
The Middle East is in total chaos and people don’t even really understand it.