[Aleppo]– The Syrian Ministry of Interior revealed on Saturday the effective execution of a “top-level” security operation targeting an Islamic State (IS) cell in the eastern communities of Aleppo. Speaking with The Media Line, Interior Ministry representative Nour al-Din al-Baba specified that the General Security Directorate collaborated the operation with the General Intelligence Department.
The raid led to the death of one terrorist, the arrest of another, and the seizure of weapons, explosive gadgets, and uniforms bearing main insignia– frequently utilized in seepage or deceptiveness strategies. One gatekeeper was eliminated in the exchange.
Aleppo’s Security Directorate recognized the operation’s area as the al-Haidariya community, positioned in the city’s east. The location was an intense battlefield throughout the Syrian Civil War, especially in between 2012 and 2016. The Directorate validated that the fight included direct clashes and concluded with the taking apart of the cell.
While IS lost its territorial control in Syria in 2019 after a significant military project led by the Syrian Democratic Forces with global union assistance, it continues to posture a danger through spread sleeper cells running throughout different parts of the nation– especially in the main desert (al-Badiya), rural areas, and along border locations.
Aleppo, when Syria’s biggest and most industrially sophisticated city, stands as a plain sign of the war’s destruction. The city was greatly objected to throughout the civil war, and its eastern districts were under opposition and jihadist control till federal government forces, backed by Russia, restored complete control. Nevertheless, erratic security operations and suspicious activity in these districts indicate the vulnerable nature of the city’s existing stability.
The Syrian federal government frames such operations as part of its continuous “war on fear”– a narrative it has actually preserved because the early years of the dispute. At a time when Damascus is looking for to reconstruct diplomatic ties with Arab and global stars after years of seclusion, these actions are utilized to highlight the state’s dedication to counterterrorism.
However, some global observers stay hesitant of the federal government’s intentions, recommending that such operations are often utilized to validate repression versus political opposition. Still, the danger postured by IS is a real issue, especially as reports emerge of restored terrorist activity in both Syria and surrounding Iraq.
This operation comes in the middle of growing local stress and anxiety over a possible IS revival, as countless previous fighters and their households stay in detention centers or displacement camps in northeast Syria. The timing likewise lines up with the federal government’s continuous efforts to reassert authority throughout its areas and job control in significant cities like Aleppo and Damascus.