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On August 18, ISIS announced via the al-Naba newspaper that its cells carried out six operations in Syria and seven others in Iraq over the past week.
In Syria, four of the terrorist operations took place in Raqqa and two others in Deir Ezzor. Both governorates are split between Syrian government forces and the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). ISIS claimed that eight people were killed or wounded in these operations.
One of the operations that took place in Raqqa claimed the life of a Syrian soldier. The remaining operations in both Raqqa and Deir Ezzor all targeted the SDF.
Meanwhile in Iraq, five of the terrorist operations took place in Kirkuk, one in Diyala and another in al-Anbar. Seven people were killed or wounded as a result of these operations, according to ISIS.
The operations in Iraq targeted Iraqi military personnel, fighters of the Tribal Mobilization Unit and pro-government civilians.
ISIS has been attempting to reestablish strongholds in both Syria and Iraq since the collapse of its caliphates a few years ago. While the terrorist group is still a real threat, its influence today is only a fraction of what it was when it first rose to power in 2014.
Syria and Iraq have been cooperating to prevent ISIS from resurging. However, the presence of US forces in Syria’s northeastern and southeastern regions have been preventing both countries from taking more serious steps to crop the terrorist group’s influence.
