US confronts ‘Axis’: Who are Iran’s allies? Can they be deterred

Analysts say the current escalation is dangerously prone to overreach and miscalculation that could lead to a direct U.S.-Iran conflict. American troops number 2,500 in Iraq and 900 in Syria. About the proxies, Renad Mansour, head of the Iraq Initiative at the Chatham House says, “The word ‘proxy’ here is difficult, because it implies just working entirely on behalf of someone else. These groups have their own interests.” (Link)