
ISIS ambush in Syria's Raqqa: Asayish officer killed, two wounded
Shafaq News/ ISIS militants attacked a patrol of the Internal Security Forces (Asayish) in the Syrian city of Raqqa, resulting in casualties, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported on Thursday.
The assault, which marks an escalation in militant activity in areas controlled by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), killed one officer and injured two others, the monitor affirmed.
ISIS sleeper cells have carried out 38 attacks in SDF-held territories since the start of 2025, including shootings, targeted assaults, and bombings. These incidents have claimed 14 lives, including 10 SDF members and four ISIS militants, raising concerns about growing violence in the region, according to SOHR.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Shafaq News
10 hours ago
- Shafaq News
Iraq's Defense Committee backs Global Coalition presence
Shafaq News/ On Saturday, Iraq's parliamentary Committee of Security and Defense affirmed the need for the continued presence of the US-led Coalition to provide aerial support amid growing regional security threats. The committee member Yasser Iskander Watout told Shafaq News that Iraq requires substantial logistical and air assistance to secure its airspace, as its current capabilities are insufficient to monitor shared borders with neighboring states. He also explained that recent contracts to procure 14 modern aircraft 'do not cover the full needs,' stressing the importance of allocating a dedicated budget to support the Ministry of Defense and strengthen the air force with new qualified personnel. Watout also noted that efforts by the Ministry of Interior and the Border Guard Command, supported by other security forces, have succeeded in tightly securing the border strip with Syria. In an interview with Al-Arabiya, Minister al-Abbasi stated that the Coalition's presence in Syria is 'necessary,' confirming that Baghdad has not received any official notification of changes to the Coalition's withdrawal timeline or of any request to increase the number of US troops. The statement follows ongoing discussions between Baghdad and Washington through the Joint Higher Military Commission, established in 2023 to define the future of the US military presence in Iraq. In early 2020, Iraq's parliament voted to require the government to establish a timetable for ending foreign military presence, following the US strike that killed Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani and Popular Mobilization Forces deputy chief Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis near Baghdad International Airport. US forces in Iraq are currently stationed at several bases, including Ain al-Asad in Al-Anbar and Harir in Erbil. Around 2,500 American troops remain in the country, focused on combating ISIS remnants and providing logistical support to Iraqi forces under the Global Coalition.


Shafaq News
14 hours ago
- Shafaq News
Last families depart Syria's major displacement camp
Shafaq News/ The Rukban displacement camp near the Jordanian-Syrian border officially closed after the final group of residents departed for eastern rural Homs. Syria's Emergency and Disaster Management Minister Raed al-Saleh described the closure in a post on X as 'the end of one of the most severe humanitarian crises faced by displaced people.' اغلاق مخيم الركبان يمثل نهاية لواحدة من أقسى المآسي الإنسانية التي واجهها أهلنا النازحون، نأمل أن تشكل هذه الخطوة بداية لمسار ينهي معاناة بقية المخيمات، يعيد أهلها إلى ديارهم بكرامة وأمان. #الجمهورية_العربية_السورية #وزارة_الطوارئ_والكوارث #مخيم_الركبان #سوريا — Raed Al Saleh ( رائد الصالح ) (@RaedAlSaleh3) June 7, 2025 The closure comes as part of a broader trend of repatriation following the political transition in Syria. The UNHCR Representative of Syria Gonzalo Vargas Llosa noted in a post on X that approximately 500,000 Syrian refugees have returned home since the fall of the previous regime on December 8, 2024. 500,000 Syrian refugees have now returned home. I referred to this landmark moment in an interview with the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA). Since the fall of the Assad regime, we have a historic opportunity to fulfill the hope of millions of refugees and internally displaced… — Gonzalo Vargas Llosa (@llosa_gonzalo) May 16, 2025 Established in 2014 amid widespread displacement from Homs and Hama, the Rukban in southeastern Syria, in Rif Dimashq province, became one of the largest camps for displaced civilians during the Syrian Civil War. It had faced years of severe humanitarian hardship and, at its peak between 2018 and 2019, hosted nearly 50,000 internally displaced persons, most of them women and children.


Shafaq News
a day ago
- Shafaq News
US hails Syrian Fatwa banning extrajudicial killings as "Step Toward Justice"
Shafaq News / US Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack has welcomed a new religious edict from Syria's Supreme Council of Fatwa, which prohibits all forms of extrajudicial killing, praising the move as a step toward justice through lawful means. Great first steps for a new Syrian Government on the move towards a new Syria. — Ambassador Tom Barrack (@USAMBTurkiye) June 6, 2025 'It is forbidden for individuals to impose punishments or carry out retribution without recourse to official or religious courts,' the council stated, emphasizing that such acts undermine social stability and create a climate of violence and disorder. The statement also condemned any form of incitement to violence, saying it fuels division and hatred within the country. 'The council called on Syrian authorities to treat the issue of justice with utmost seriousness and urgency, ensuring the swift restoration of rights and preventing instigators and mercenaries from exploiting the situation to sow discord.'