The enemy of our enemy

Iraqi forces heavily fortified by Iranbacked Shi’ite militia fighters have launched an assault to recapture Tikrit from Islamic State jihadists. The Iraqis report progress, with Islamic State fighters retreating. That’s significant because this is the largest offensive since Islamic State marauded across Iraq and Syria last year, planting its flag on a huge swath of territory and proclaiming a new Islamic caliphate.

Iraq’s wobbly army couldn’t oust Islamic State without help. So Teheran is supplying Baghdad with a cadre of high-level military advisers and an array of military hardware to retake Tikrit. Yes, Teheran is largely running the show. Not Washington.

Why not? The Iraqis didn’t ask Washington for help.

Need more proof that the struggle to crush the Islamic State has scrambled alliances across the Middle East?

The U.S. and Iran square off in nuclear negotiations that come down to the wire this month. Meanwhile, in Iraq, the U.S. and Iran are fighting . . . on the same side, to pulverize Islamic State jihadists.

Does that make Iran a U.S. ally? Not quite.

“The enemy of your enemy is your enemy,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Congress, earning thunderous applause. True. But in this case, the enemy of our enemy still can be useful in the fight against another enemy.

The U.S. hopes to rebuild the Iraqi army so that it represents Shi’ites, Sunnis and Kurds. U.S. forces are training Iraqi troops for the upcoming battle to recapture Mosul, the largest city under Islamic State control. But that takes time. That’s why Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters: “The important thing about this operation in Tikrit in my view is less about how the military aspect of it goes and more about what follows.”

Iraq was a ripe target for Islamic State leaders because former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki failed to follow through on promises to include Sunni Muslim leaders in key positions in his government and armed forces. Instead, the Shi’ite leader purged Sunnis from the armed forces and government. He set the stage for a furious backlash and Islamic State’s ascension.

First order of business: Bury Islamic State. The U.S.—the entire Middle East—benefits if that happens.

But then what? Iran, a major sponsor of terror, is deepening its control of the Iraqi army. The leader of Iran’s elite Quds Force—a terrorist responsible for deadly attacks on U.S. forces during the Iraq War—was reportedly spotted sipping tea in Tikrit. That should set off alarms in Washington.

The U.S. and its Arab allies can push back. Remind the Iraqi prime minister that any victory over the Islamic State will be short-lived if Sunnis, Kurds and Shi’ites in Iraq can’t find a way to share power. Even if Islamic State falls, another Sunni-led force will rise to rip apart Iraq.