US military deploys awesome firepower in eastern Syria

The Pentagon has now confirmed on a number of occasions that 500-600 US soldiers are now deployed to protect the Syrian oil wells in Eastern Syria, with the income from the drilling being handed over to the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). But the deployment is so much more than a battalion of troops. These scattered oil wells are also home to some of the US military's heavyweight warfighting equipment. They include armoured Bradley fighting vehicles and Apache attack helicopters, one of America's most prestigious and combat-proven firepower platforms. Apaches have been used in every confict since the US offensive operation in Panama in 1989 and were the scourge of Saddam Hussein's forces in the 1991 Gulf War and the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq. They are a mighty weapon of war and several of them are now playing their part in warding off any unwelcome visitors to the oil fields in the Deir el-Zour province in eastern Syria. There are aso believed to be Chinooks and Black Hawks for ferrying troops around and providing additional firepower, and self-propelled artillery. The US military prides itself on being able to demonstrate overwhelming force wherever it is facing potential enemies. In this case there are any number of opposing forces which could present hostile intent: Syrian regime units trying to recover the oil wells, Russian and Turkish troops on joint patrols in the region, Iranian militia and Isis fighters tryng to surge back into contention. So the US firepower amassed in Deir el-Zour should act as a powerful deterrent. What a contrast to just a few weeks ago when Trump ordered all 1,200 US troops out of northeast Syria to make way for the invading Turkish army. Apart from the firepower presence and 600 troops, the US military is once agan serving alongside its old anti-Isis comrades from the SDF. The alliance is back in style. When US troops started to leave their bases prior to the Turkish invasion they were pelted with rocks and potatoes by the local Kurds who felt they had been abandoned. When US troops came back to protect the oil wells, the locals greeted them with enthusiasm, all bitterness forgotten. What the Pentagon is not confirming, for obvious reasons, is whether the SDF comrades-in-arms are selling the oil on the black market to the Syrian regime. This is exactly what Isis did when they seized control of the oil wells in eastern Syria. I would be amazed if the SDF is not using the same middlemen whom Isis depended on, to get the revenue it needs for paying and feeding its fighters.