Puppet Show In Middle-East: Iran Is Pulling The Strings, Has Missiles Pointed At US Troops From Iraq

• More U.S. forces are deploying to the Middle East
• Iran has sneaked in and stockpiled missiles in Iraq
• The missiles can hit U.S. troops, allies and Israel

Rising tensions between Tehran and Washington over the last couple of months have many people in the intelligence and defense communities on the edge of their seats. It was recently reported that an Iranian P3 Orion buzzed us warships in the Gulf of Oman, despite the U.S. Navy shooting down a couple of Iranian drones earlier this year. There was no hostile exchange between the Iranians and the U.S. Navy; however, it did appear to be some passive-aggressive form of provocation.

New intelligence, however, indicates that there is a much more significant threat to U.S. military personnel and allied forces in the region as it appears that Iran has been using the cloud of civil unrest in the area to sneak weaponry into Iraq. A report by Haaretz confirms a previous report by The New York Times that Iran does have short to medium-range ballistic missiles in Iraq within the tactical range of U.S. forces in the region and Jerusalem. The missiles are suggested to have a range of 600 miles.

If that's the case, then how did Iran manage to smuggle these weapons into a region where the U.S. military has such a strong presence? The answer to that is simple: there are Shiite groups in Iraq that receive backing from Tehran in a similar manner as the Houthi rebels in Yemen. Iran continues to be the “Grand Puppet Master” of the region.

What do they stand to gain from an attack on US forces or our allies? The real answer to that is nothing. And they stand to lose a lot. The United States government has made it very plain to Iran what the political implications of such an attack would be.

A source with the U.S. military in Baghdad, who chose to speak on the condition of anonymity, told International Business Times that incursions by groups of fighters have increased in the area, and the troops are also on guard for a possible attack using these missiles.

The U.S. has continued to send troops into the area as well as maintain a robust naval presence, with two aircraft carriers operating in the vicinity, as well as several other military assets. To the untrained eye, it would appear that the U.S. is just maintaining its global policing policies; however, to those in the intelligence community, it would almost seem as though the U.S. is positioning itself to be prepared for a small scale war with Iran.