The Islamic State group has resurfaced in Syria in recent days, with near-daily reports of people killed and wounded in attacks attributed to the terrorist organization. The violence comes amid rising security tensions in northeast Syria, particularly around detention facilities holding ISIS operatives, as Syrian government forces take control of areas and prisons previously overseen by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, or SDF. A reduction in the US military presence has further complicated the situation.
On Tuesday, Syrian state-affiliated outlets reported the dismantling of a terrorist cell linked to ISIS that was suspected of attacking a checkpoint belonging to Internal Security Forces west of Raqqa. A security source was quoted as saying the operation ended with the arrest of several cell members and that investigations were continuing to identify and detain others connected to the network.
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Forces of the al-Sharaa regime at the detention camp
(Photo: AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
The operation followed reports Monday that four security personnel were killed and two wounded in an attack on the checkpoint in Raqqa. According to the reports, government forces stationed there killed one of the assailants during the clash. Syrian media said the same checkpoint had previously been targeted in a similar attack, indicating a pattern of small-cell “hit-and-run” operations in the area.
Rami Assad al-Taha, head of Internal Security in Raqqa province, said security forces had neutralized the ISIS cell leader responsible for the attacks, killed another member and arrested four others. He said searches were ongoing and that checkpoints and security centers were being reinforced to protect civilians and pursue anyone threatening state security.
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Families of Australian ISIS operatives deported and denied entry in Canberra
(Photo: AP Photo/Baderkhan Ahmad)
Interior Minister Anas Khattab wrote Tuesday on X that Interior Ministry forces were continuing to monitor terrorist activity, describing them as a shield for the nation. He said attempts to undermine regional stability were ongoing, citing remnants of the former regime and its militias, as well as ISIS and its affiliates. He accused ISIS of exploiting misguided youth to destabilize the country’s eastern region and said security forces had sacrificed their lives in recent days.
‘Jihad in Syria has entered a new phase’
The recent violence has not been limited to Raqqa. Syrian social media channels reported late Tuesday that a person was killed by gunmen believed to be linked to ISIS in the city of Albu Kamal, east of Deir al-Zour. Other reports said ISIS attacked an Internal Security checkpoint and a security center in the Deir al-Zour area.
In recent days, statements attributed to ISIS have circulated online. One, reportedly issued by spokesman Abu Hudhaifa al-Ansari, included threats against the Syrian state, calling for fighting the government and claiming Syria had shifted from Alawite rule to what he described as Turkish-American rule. The statement said jihad in Syria had not ended but had entered a new phase.
Since President Ahmad al-Sharaa took power, Syrian authorities have carried out ongoing operations to dismantle remaining ISIS cells and detain suspected affiliates. These efforts have included cooperation with the international coalition against ISIS, which Syria joined last year. Still, ISIS’s renewed activity appears linked to broader security developments, particularly in the northeast.
Reports of escapes, US withdrawal
The government’s takeover of areas and detention facilities previously controlled by the SDF has unsettled security in northeast Syria. In recent weeks, reports have claimed that ISIS members escaped from some of those facilities. The drawdown of US forces, which lead the international coalition against ISIS, has also raised concerns.
On the 15th of this month, Syria’s Defense Ministry media office told the state-affiliated Al-Ikhbariya channel that the Syrian army had taken control of the al-Shaddadi base in Hasakah province following coordination with the United States. Days earlier, reports said US forces had withdrawn from the al-Tanf base near the Syria-Iraq-Jordan border triangle.
On the 12th of the month, a US official told Qatar’s Al Jazeera that about 300 American troops had left al-Tanf. He said the strengthened role of Syrian government forces in combating ISIS had contributed to the reduced US deployment but that the United States would continue to pressure ISIS through airstrikes conducted from outside Syria.
On Monday, Saudi-owned Al-Hadath cited a European Union statement warning that the sudden shift in the balance of power in northern Syria had destabilized ISIS detention camps. Lebanon’s Al-Akhbar newspaper, which is affiliated with Hezbollah, reported that US forces were moving toward a full withdrawal from bases in Syria and an end to their military presence within six weeks.
According to a source cited by the paper, Washington informed Kurdish authorities and the Syrian government of its decision to withdraw as part of a broader regional realignment. The source warned the move would negatively affect the fight against ISIS, which has already issued threats against the Syrian government.
Beyond ISIS, the new Syrian authorities face additional challenges from groups that continue to oppose them. On Tuesday, a security source told Al-Ikhbariya that a member of Syria’s Internal Security Forces was killed in clashes with the armed militia Saraya al-Joud, which is associated with former President Bashar Assad’s regime, near the city of Jableh in rural Latakia.