Iran is still aiding Shiite militia in Iraq, according to a new report from the Pentagon. Many had hoped Iran would begin to cooperate with the United States during the autumn and winter months, but this report shows this just isn’t happening.

“There has been no identified decrease in Iranian training and funding of illegal Shia militias in Iraq,” said the report, released last Tuesday. The report went on to say that Iran supplies “many of the explosives and ammunition used by these groups.”

The fact is, Iran is doing all it can to undermine U.S. efforts in Iraq. “Tehran’s support for Shiite militant groups who attack Coalition and Iraq forces remains a significant impediment to progress,” the report said.

No matter what the earlier national intelligence estimate (nie) says—whether Iran is trying to manufacture nuclear weapons or not—the Islamic Republic is still the number-one state sponsor of terrorism. It still clamors for Israel to be wiped off the map. It still wants to control Iraq.

Remarkably, it is in the face of this kind of evidence that the U.S. appears closer and closer to striking a final deal with Iran over future control of Iraq. The timing of the release of the Pentagon report indicates it may in fact be a deliberate move by the U.S. administration to pressure Iran to bring Shiite militias in Iraq under control in order to cement such a deal.

Ultimately it will be Iran, not the U.S., that gets the upper hand in the region. As Gerald Flurry, editor in chief of the Trumpet,wrote in 2003:

Now that Iraq has been taken out of the picture, Iran is even closer to becoming the reigning king of the Middle East. It may seem shocking, given the U.S. presence in the region right now, but prophecy indicates that, in pursuit of its goal, Iran will probably take overIraq. At least, it will have a heavy influence over the Iraqi people.

Iran will emerge from this conflict as the reigning king of this region. For more information, read our article “Is Iraq About to Fall to Iran?”