Islamic State group claims first attack on new Syria forces since fall of Assad regime
The Islamic State (IS) group on Thursday claimed its first attack on Syria 's new government forces since the fall of longtime Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, two war monitors said.
In a statement picked up by SITE Intelligence Group, IS said it had planted an "explosive device" on a Syrian forces' vehicle in the southern province of Sweida.
SITE and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said it was the first IS-claimed attack on Syria's new government. SOHR said that one person was killed and three members of the Syrian army's 70th division were injured when a patrol was hit by a remote control landmine on Wednesday.
The man killed was accompanying the Syrian government forces in the desert area, according to SOHR.
Once in control of large swathes of Syria and Iraq, IS was territorially defeated in Syria in 2019 largely due to the efforts of Kurdish-led forces supported by an international coalition. It has maintained a presence mainly in the country's vast desert.
Reported attacks by the group in areas controlled by the Islamist-led government, which took power after Assad's ouster in December, have been scarce.
However, they have continuously carried out attacks on Kurdish-led forces in the northeast.
This week, Syrian authorities said they arrested members of an Islamic State cell near Damascus, accusing them of preparing attacks.
Another government operation in the northern city of Aleppo this month saw the death of one security forces officer and three IS group members.
Although the US was initially circumspect about Syria's new leaders, with the Islamist insurgent group previously led by Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa still listed as a terrorist organisation by Washington, the Trump administration has in recent weeks shown increasing openness to Damascus.
During a meeting with al-Sharaa in Riyadh this month, US President Donald Trump called on him to "help the United States to prevent the resurgence of IS", according to the White House.
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