Damascus, Syria – Syria’s transitional government said on Monday it had dismantled an ISIS cell operating in the rural outskirts of the capital, Damascus, as part of ongoing efforts to curb extremist activity in the country.
In a statement posted on the social media platform X, the Interior Ministry said security forces conducted a “high-level counter-terrorism operation” in western Ghouta, resulting in the arrest of several ISIS operatives.
The ministry reported that the raid led to the discovery of improvised explosive devices, suicide vests, firearms, and ammunition in locations used by the cell.
“This operation is part of continuous efforts to pursue terrorist networks and strengthen national security,” the statement said.
Meanwhile, the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said on Monday it had repelled an attempted ISIS attack in the eastern province of Deir ez-Zor.
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In a statement carried by the pro-Kurdish Hawar News Agency, the SDF said militants on motorbikes opened fire with automatic weapons on one of its outposts in the town of al-Sabha on Sunday. A civilian was injured in the ensuing clashes and transported to a nearby hospital.
ISIS has stepped up its activities across Syria in recent weeks, launching sporadic attacks in the central desert and in the northeast, where both government and Kurdish-led forces maintain separate zones of control.
Just days earlier, Syrian intelligence forces said they had killed three ISIS fighters and arrested four others in a raid on a safehouse in the northern city of Aleppo.
