Syria arrests IS-linked cell over Damascus bombings during Macron visit
The bombings have raised fresh concerns about the Islamic State's resurgence as it tries to exploit the post-Assad transition
Syrian authorities said Thursday they had captured a cell linked to ISIS that was responsible for two bombings in Damascus this week. In a post on X, Interior Minister Anas Khattab said, "The cell responsible for the terrorist bombings that targeted Damascus two days ago is now in our custody," adding that the identities, roles, and affiliations of the cell's members would be revealed once investigations conclude.
Ahmad al-Dalati, head of internal security in the Damascus countryside, said preliminary investigations showed the cell was affiliated with the Islamic State, explaining that authorities tracked one member and used surveillance to identify the rest of the group. The interior ministry said the cell was captured following simultaneous raids across four Damascus-area neighborhoods, two of which have populations from Assad's Alawite minority. ISIS has not claimed responsibility for the attack.
The two blasts struck central Damascus Tuesday, killing one person and wounding 18, near the hotel where Macron had spent the night, moments before Syrian state media announced his arrival to meet President Ahmed al-Sharaa at the presidential palace. Macron, the first EU head of state to visit Syria since Assad's ouster in 2024, said afterward that Syria must "not let ourselves be destabilized" by such attacks and reaffirmed Paris's support for the country.
The bombing fits a broader pattern of Islamic State activity since Assad's fall, which Western and Middle Eastern officials have warned could allow the group to stage a comeback in Syria and Iraq. The group declared a new operational phase against al-Sharaa's government in February, and a UN report said al-Sharaa and two cabinet ministers have been targeted in five foiled assassination attempts.
Iraqi security officials say the group has shifted from a conventional force to a decentralized network of underground cells and couriers, a structure now mirrored in Syria as it works to withstand counterterrorism campaigns.