Iran is using Syria as a base to attack Israel which will lead to a war that could spread throughout the Middle East

Wall Street Journal:
Iran’s Moves in Syria Raise Risk of Conflict With Israel

A confrontation could embroil the U.S. and Russia; ‘the situation is ripe for a single miscalculation’

Israel faces a harsh new world as Syria’s civil war winds down: while Iran remains far away, the Iranian threat now is next door.

There are several hundred miles and two countries separating Israel and Iran, whose leaders openly seek to dismantle the Jewish state. Iranian military forces, however, are already entrenching themselves in Syrian bases within striking distance of Israeli towns.

In Israeli assessments, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and other units in Syria have now switched their primary mission from preventing a collapse of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime to preparing for a future confrontation with Israel.

“They’ve succeeded in the war for Assad to survive. Now their first priority has changed and Israel is the target,” said retired Maj. Gen. Yaakov Amidror, who served as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s national security adviser from 2011 to 2013. “They want to prevent Israel from reacting in any way to the next stage, in which Iran is building its nuclear capability. For us it is essential to stop Iran and for that we are ready to take the risk of a war.”
...

Unless Iran backs down on its Syrian buildup—something that Tehran shows no intention of doing so far—this confrontation is only bound to escalate in coming weeks and months, potentially embroiling the U.S. and Russia, the two superpowers that are also actively engaged in Syria.

Letting Tehran solidify its military presence in Syria would be “agreeing to the Iranians placing a noose around our necks,” Israel’s Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman warned on a visit near the cease-fire line with Syria in the Golan Heights last week.

Russia, which—unlike the U.S.—is friendly with both nations, has been trying to defuse this looming clash.

“The situation is getting more dangerous with every day. But Russia is employing all efforts so that things don’t take a turn for the worse,” said Elena Suponina, a Middle East expert at the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies in Moscow. “A direct confrontation between Israel and Iran is not in Russia’s interests.”
...
There is more.

One of the triggers could be the US withdrawal from Syria allowing Iran to increase its base structure.  Israel has told Russia that it will overthrow the Assad regime if he allows Iran to use it as a base for attacking Israel.   The Trump administration is trying to get an Arab force to work with the Kurds if the US pulls out.  There would have to be a commitment to keep Iran out for that to work.

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