From time to time, there are reports that the American military base at Al-Tanf, located in southern Syria, has been bombed and attacked by the parties to the conflict.

Russia, Iran, the Syrian regime, and the Islamic State.

The most recent of these attacks was in June 2022, when the Wall Street Journal quoted US military personnel that two Russian Sukhoi fighters targeted a site at Al-Tanf base of the international coalition led by Washington in Syria, without indicating that to the damages or target location.

Perhaps this attack is not the first of its kind. Over the past years, Al-Qaeda has been repeatedly targeted by armed and unmanned aircraft, as well as missiles, in addition to repeated attacks on the ground by ISIS, pro-Iranian militias, and the Syrian regime forces, which undermine Al-Tanf’s complete control over the Badia and the south of the country.

What is the story of the establishment of the Al-Tanf base and its importance that prompted Washington to exclude it from the decision to withdraw US forces from Syria issued by President Donald Trump in 2018?

Al-Tanf military base was actually established in 2016 at the intersection of the Syrian borders with Jordan and Iraq and administratively belongs to Homs, the largest province in Syria. Larger, in addition to the presence of British soldiers and from other countries participating in the coalition.

Al-Qaeda - according to the same report, citing sources in the US Department of Defense - is used to continue operations against the Islamic State and impede the activities of Iran's proxies in Syria, while at the same time it is considered a card of influence in the long-standing negotiations on the future of Syria.

A map of Syria showing the location of the Al-Tanf base, the buffer zone surrounding it, and the Rukban camp for Syrian refugees (Al-Jazeera)

Satellite images broadcast by Russian websites showed the United States' work to expand the military base in Al-Tanf since the early years of its establishment, and media reports indicated that Washington provided the base with weapons, advanced missile launchers and various aircraft.

The importance of the rule

Before 2016, the area surrounding the base was under the control of the Islamic State, before it was expelled from it by the international coalition forces led by Washington.

Since then, the United States has used it as a training base for Syrian opposition groups.

The base is located on one of the main highways between Baghdad and Damascus;

He is responsible - according to what Washington says - for transferring weapons supplies from Iran to Syria and Lebanese Hezbollah fighters. The base is also surrounded by a sanctuary or a buffer zone with a radius of 55 kilometers that was formed in the framework of an American-Russian understanding in 2016.

Al-Tanf is the only site with a significant US presence in Syria outside the north, which is controlled by US-backed Kurdish fighters.

This area has enabled US forces and their allies to undermine ISIS operations, and has prevented the entry of Iranian militias, according to the Washington Institute report.

It also had a secondary effect in attracting thousands of displaced Syrians to the Rukban camp, which is only a few miles from the base on the Syrian side of the border, and protecting them from attacks by regime forces.


At its peak, Rukban was a refuge for more than 50,000 displaced Syrians, although this number - according to reports - declined to about 10,000 over the years, in light of the return of a number of its residents to regime-controlled areas following the conclusion of several deals with Damascus.

"The Revolutionary Commandos Army"

Also, al-Rukban camp hosts the families of the main opposition faction in the "al-Tanf military base", called the "Maghawir al-Thawra Army", a group of former Syrian officers and soldiers, most of whom hail from Deir ez-Zor governorate (east), which ISIS took control of in its extensive offensive in Syria and Iraq. The summer of 2014 before he was expelled from it years later.

And about the role played by the American-backed faction in al-Qaeda, the media office of the Revolutionary Commando Army stated in a written statement to Al-Jazeera Net that its main mission is to protect the area in which the base and its surroundings are located, and to prevent infiltration attempts by ISIS and the regime, in addition to combating drug smuggling in all its forms.

On the extent of its ability to protect that wide area despite the limited number of its members, the faction indicated that it does so through "tight military plans and high coordination with friends in the international coalition."

An account in the name of the aforementioned faction on Twitter shows recent photos from inside the American military base and trainings that its fighters carry out with American soldiers, as well as meetings of its leaders with the elements.

Another hot day in the desert.


But we will continue to train relentlessly in the 55 km area with our American partners to confront ISIS and our opponents.


Mortars, machine guns, rifles and all the firepower.

# Strong together # Al Tanf # Coalition # Syria @ SOJTF_LEVANT @CJTFOIR pic.twitter.com/Matb82JtBW

- Maghaweir al-Thawra (@MaghaweirThowra) June 19, 2022

Other photos also show that the faction leader inspected the effects of the last raid and the damage to al-Tanf base in mid-June 2022.

The Commander of the Revolutionary Commando Army, Brigadier General Muhannad Al-Talaa, visited the point that was attacked yesterday, in order to inspect the fighters, check on their safety and assess the damage caused by this attack.

#Al-Tanf #Syria #Rukban camp #Attack pic.twitter.com/ujzvqdDJFz

- Maghaweir al-Thawra (@MaghaweirThowra) June 16, 2022

The US State Department estimates the deployment of about 300 members of the "Maghawir al-Thawra" faction in the buffer zone surrounding the base.

The American forces had trained the faction since it established a presence at the base, and is currently cooperating with it in anti-ISIS and humanitarian missions.

regional role

Regarding the role played by al-Qaeda, Colonel Fayez al-Asmar, a military and strategic analyst, says that all the American military bases deployed on the Syrian geography are important to Washington, and often choose their locations near the border strip that connects Syria with Turkey and Iraq, such as the bases of Tal Baidar, Shaddadi, Al-Malikiyah and Rmelan in Al-Hasakah and the Kharab Eshq base, south of the city of Ain Arab, on the border with Turkey.

Al-Asmar - a former leader in the Free Syrian Army - indicated that all US bases in Syria are located east of the Euphrates River and in the desert of Al-Jazirah region;

However, the only base located in the vast area called "Al-Shamiya" desert is the strategic Al-Tanf base.

He stressed that the importance of the base lies in its location at the border triangle between Syria, Iraq and Jordan;

What gives its forces room to maneuver inside Syria in more than one direction and even outside it if necessary, and also its location on the main supply route between Iran, Damascus and Beirut through Iraq, as well as its importance lies in fighting ISIS cells whose activity is generally increasing in the “Al-Shamiya” desert after losing The organization has its spatial control in both Syria and Iraq.

According to the Washington Institute, in addition to undermining the line of communication on the ground that unites Iran with "Hezbollah" and the Syrian regime, the US presence at Al-Tanf base has proven to be beneficial for what Tel Aviv describes as "Israel's campaign between wars", which was reported to have included dozens of air missions. Against targets belonging to the regime and other targets of the Revolutionary Guards or the Iranian militias and Hezbollah in Syria.

The American base also protects the nearby Rukban camp for Syrian refugees (Al-Jazeera)

Al-Qaeda also served Jordanian interests;

The US soldiers and their "Commando of the Revolution" partners helped ensure the security of the kingdom's remote borders with Iraq and Syria against smuggling and possible infiltration of ISIS elements or Iranian militias.

Although Jordan warned of a threat posed by the Rukban camp, Washington helped reduce this danger by erecting barriers and supporting US-trained military personnel who patrol the Syrian side of the border.

Al-Tanf's future

Recent reports indicate that the administration of President Joe Biden has completed its review of US policy toward Syria and will focus on continuing operations to defeat ISIS and provide humanitarian assistance.

The Washington Institute sees this as a qualitative shift from the Trump administration's policy, which focused on two other goals besides defeating the organization;

They are the implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2554 (which includes enabling a political transition allowing the formation of a Syrian governing body) and ensuring the exit of all foreign forces.

The Biden administration may not be interested in prioritizing the goals of the previous administration, as shown by its perceived lack of interest in preventing Arab normalization with Bashar al-Assad or appointing a high-ranking envoy to Syria.

However, maintaining an American foothold at the Al-Tanf base and in the country's northeast would fundamentally benefit American interests and the administration's goals.

Not to mention preventing the Islamic State from reconfiguring its ranks enough to launch new attacks in Syria or beyond, the US presence on the ground is Washington's main source of influence in shaping Syria's future and undermining Iran's cross-border activities.

Colonel Fayez Al-Asmar adds that the Al-Tanf base gives US forces the ability to use advanced Haimars missile launchers and other modern weapons, as well as send drones in the region, and it is possible to make it a base and a base for launching and ground movement;

In the event that the Iranian militias or Hezbollah and the regime forces threaten Israel from southern Syria,

Due to the possibility of safe supplies arriving from Iraq and Jordan.