At the very end of last year on the 31st of December, the Pentagon once again acted out an intrigue around its military bases in Syria. US defence minister James Mattis warned, that any attack on US bases would be repelled and the attackers would be punished.

The media agencies ‘Russia Today’ and ‘Sputnik’ proved the existence of 10 American military bases in the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic. However, Iranian intelligence agencies have provided more detailed data, which suggests that there are 14 American bases in Syria, of which 12 are located in the north of the country and 2 in the south. What is more, Turkish media outlets have reported about the existence of 13 US arms depots in Kurd territories, which are located in close proximity to American bases.

  1. The Dirik base

The Dirik base is the furthest point of American presence in Syria. It is located on the Turkish-Syrian border and includes two military bases from which groups of American paratroopers provide help to the Syrian Democratic Forces. The Dirik base also serves an airbase for American logistic flights.

  1. The Sabakh-al-Khair base

The Sabakh-al-Khair base is located is located to the south-west of the city of Al-Hasakah and is especially important because of its proximity to the Syria-Iraq border. This base only holds American combat helicopters, which transport arms and assistance to the Syrian Kurds.

  1. The Ayn-Issa base

The Ayn-Issa base is located between the Turkish border and the Syrian city of Raqqa. It is from this base that arms and ammunition are supplied to troops of the Kurdish ‘Democratic Union Party’.

  1. The Tal al-Saman base

The Tal al-Saman base is the second American base located between the Turkish border and Raqqa. It is the most important espionage and bugging station in Syria.

  1. The Al-Tabka base

The Al-Tabka base is located to the south of Raqqa and serves as an airport for US aircraft.

  1. The Al-Djalbiat base

The Al-Djalbiat base, which is located to the northwest of Raqqa, is an unsanctioned military zone and is the location of 40 modern military-logistical aircraft, a landing strip, launch platforms for several kinds of complex missile, and several other types of aircraft.

  1. The Kharb Ishk base

The Kharb Ishik base is part of eight bases close to the northern border between Turkey and Syria. It holds American military units.

  1. The Jebel Mashnur base

The Jebel Mashnur base is the most northern in Syria. Its defining feature is a radio relay used by American and French special forces.

  1. The Sirin base

The Sirin base is located to the east of the city of Manbij. It is from this base that American paratroopers leave to execute various missions in Syria.

  1. The Al-Talf n0 1. and 2 bases

The two bases in Al-Tanf are shared by American and British forces, as well as soldiers from the new ‘Syrian Free Army’.

  1. The Tal-Tamir base

The Tal-Tamir base is also used by British, American, and SFA forces. It is located in north-eastern Syria not far from the city of Al-Hasakah. 200 American and 70 French soldiers are located at the base, as well as training barracks for the FSA.

  1. The Manbidj base

The Manbidj base has the most strategic importance as it is located in an area with a high risk of confrontations between the Kurds and the FSA. It appears that this base was opened in order to avert conflicts and prevent the area from being accessed by Syrian forces.

  1. The Aleppo base

The Aleppo base was created in a strategic region to prevent conflict between the SFA and Kurd forces and to deny the area to Syrian forces. The Americans are planning to monitor the region from this base.

The presence of American military infrastructure in northern Syria is evidence, that the Americans are stabilising their position in the region for a long time. The bases’ geographical locations correspond with the widened territory of Syrian Kurdistan, the autonomy of which is secured by the Pentagon by deliveries of light and heavy armaments and military vehicles to the Kurds. The arming of Syrian Kurds and the breakaway of this territory corresponds to the new plan of proxy warfare to contain Iran in Syria and the eastern Mediterranean.

Source: Alena Bajowa, Курдский проект США: иранская разведка рассекретила 14 американских баз в Сирии, published on 11.01.2018 at Politikus.ru, accessible via: https://politikus.ru/events/103575-kurdskiy-proekt-ssha-iranskaya-razvedka-rassekretila-14-amerikanskih-baz-v-sirii.html

Translated from the Original Russian by Edvin Buday.