Four Syrian Security Forces Killed in ISIS Attack

Four Syrian security personnel were killed in an attack by the Islamic State (ISIS) group in the northern city of Raqqa. The area was recently recaptured by Damascus from Kurdish forces.

According to AFP on Tuesday (24/2/2026), Syria’s Interior Ministry said the attack was the second against security forces in two consecutive days. The assault came after ISIS called on its fighters to confront Syrian authorities.

The official news agency SANA, citing a security source, said that “four members of the internal security forces” were killed in an attack attributed to ISIS.

Syria’s Interior Ministry described the “terrorist attack” as targeting a checkpoint on Monday (23/2). The ministry said one of the attackers was killed.

The ministry did not specify casualties in the earlier incident on Sunday but said it also resulted in the death of one attacker.

Last month, the Syrian government seized the city of Raqqa from Kurdish forces who, with US backing, had led the fight against ISIS until its territorial defeat in Syria in 2019. Iraq had claimed victory over the militant group two years earlier.

ISIS once used Raqqa as its de facto capital. The group still maintains sleeper cells across Syria’s vast desert regions.

Since overthrowing former ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, Syria’s new government, which has ties to the jihadist group Al-Qaeda, has sought to distance itself from its radical past and project a moderate image.

Last year, Syria joined the US-led coalition against ISIS and has been coordinating strikes against the group’s remnants in the country.