Story highlights There are concerns in the Pentagon that the US is being dragged into a wider conflict

The US has shot down a Syrian jet and two Iranian made drones in recent weeks

(CNN) When the US and allies first launched airstrikes against ISIS in 2014, the Obama administration made clear that the US would not get dragged into the quagmire that is the wider Syrian civil war that has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives since 2011.

However, there are serious concerns being expressed in the Pentagon that the US could be dragged into a wider regional conflict, not just with Syria but Iran.

Officials are privately worried that Iran's ongoing efforts to build an area of control stretching from Tehran to Beirut will eventually expand the US war by posing a security threat to US troops operating in southern Syria near the border with Iraq and Jordan.

In the last few weeks US forces have had to respond to Iranian backed Shia militias challenging US outposts and a garrison at At Tanf. The US military has recently expanded its presence in the area establishing several small outposts called "operating areas." These small bases are an addition to the main garrison at At Tanf where US troops are training local tribes to fight ISIS.

The US has also shot down a Syrian jet as well two Iranian made drones in recent weeks.

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