ISIS STRIKES AGAIN IN CENTRAL SYRIA

The situation in Syria is slowly getting calmer despite some serious military and security developments, especially in the central and southern regions. In the central region, the threat of ISIS appears to be growing. On June 20, one of the terrorist group’s cells ambushed a bus near the area of al-Jerah on the Raqqa-Homs highway. Eleven service members of the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and two civilians were killed in the ambush. On June 22 and 23, warplanes of the Russian Aerospace Forces carried out a series of airstrikes on ISIS hideouts near the town of al-Resafa and on Mount al-Bishri in the southern Raqqa countryside in response to the deadly ambush. Syrian news sources also reported that the SAA is preparing to launch a combing operation to push ISIS cells out from the southern Raqqa countryside. The army’s 17th Division, 25th Special Mission Forces Division and the 5th Corps will lead the operation, which will be backed by Russian forces. In the southern region, the situation remains unstable especially in the governorate of Daraa. On June 21, two officers of the SAA’s 112th Brigade were killed when their vehicle was targeted with an improvised explosive device (IED) on a road between the towns of Ain Thakar and Jamlah in the western Daraa countryside. One of the officers was responsible for several key checkpoints located near the separation line with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and the border with Jordan. On June 22, a vehicle carrying a warrant officer and other three personnel of the Air Force Intelligence Directorate (AFID) was targeted with an IED in the northern part of Daraa city. All four survived the attack. Syrian pro-opposition sources claimed that the warrant officer was responsible for many recent assassinations that targeted opponents of the government in Daraa. Meanwhile in northern Syria, the situation remains tense. As of June 23, the Turkish military is still preparing to launch an operation against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), despite the recent conflict between its proxies which evolved into a battle in Afrin and other parts of the northern Aleppo countryside. Any hostilities by the Turkish military and its proxies against the SDF in the northern region will likely lead to a serious confrontation, not only with the Kurdish-led group but also with the SAA.