Aleppo, northern Syria— A member of Syria’s General Security Forces was killed and two others wounded during an armed confrontation with a suspected Islamic State (IS) cell in Aleppo on Saturday, according to our correspondent in the city.
The incident occurred in the al-Haidariya district in northern Aleppo, an area under the control of the Syrian Government. A militant detonated an explosive belt during the clash, resulting in casualties among the security forces, the correspondent added.
The killed officer was identified as Mohammad Hijazi.
The confrontation comes amid a noticeable uptick in Islamic State activity in recent weeks, particularly in central and northern Syria. Though the group lost its territorial strongholds in 2019, remnants continue to operate in the country’s vast deserts and less-governed areas.
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Just two days earlier, local sources reported that IS militants attacked the home of a food trader in the historic city of Palmyra (Tadmur), in Homs province. The assailants used rocket-propelled grenades, damaging the building but causing no casualties. The trader, known as Abu Omar al-Subaihan, had allegedly been threatened by IS over refusal to pay “zakat,” or a form of extortion disguised as religious alms.
The group accused him of collaborating with Iran-backed militias that had previously operated in the region.
Though Syria’s civil war has largely shifted away from full-scale battles, the Islamic State continues to exploit power vacuums, particularly in areas where governance is fragmented.
