The Interior Ministry said the group had been planning operations aimed at undermining security and stability in Homs, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), as the government intensifies efforts to reassert control across the country following the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad’s government in 2024.

Security forces confiscated anti-tank missile launchers, sniper rifles, automatic weapons, RPG launchers and large quantities of ammunition during the operation, the ministry said.

It described the raid as part of broader efforts to track and dismantle sleeper cells and eliminate what it called the remaining sources of terrorism across Syrian territory.Authorities did not identify the group involved or specify whether it had links to Daesh or other militant organizations still active in parts of Syria.

Syria has faced recurring security threats since the collapse of the Assad regime, with attacks targeting both domestic security forces and foreign military personnel operating in the country.In December, an attack on a joint patrol near Palmyra in Homs province killed two U.S. soldiers and a civilian interpreter, while injuring three U.S. service members and two Syrian security personnel.

The incident underscored continuing instability in central Syria, where remnants of militant networks continue to operate despite years of military campaigns against insurgent groups.In November, Syria became the 90th member of the Global Coalition against Daesh, the international alliance formed in 2014 to combat the militant group after it seized large parts of Syria and northern Iraq.

Although Daesh no longer controls major territory, security officials and international observers continue to warn that the group retains the capacity to conduct insurgent attacks, particularly in remote desert areas and regions with weakened state control.

The latest operation in Homs reflects Damascus’ effort to project authority and reassure both domestic and international partners that it can contain militant threats as the country navigates a fragile post-Assad transition.

National broadcaster ABC reported that four Australian women and nine of their children and grandchildren departed Roj Camp on Friday, citing the camp’s director, with Syrian authorities transporting them to Damascus to facilitate onward travel to Australia.

The Australian government said it was not involved in the operation and maintained its long-standing policy against actively repatriating individuals from such camps.“The Australian Government is not and will not repatriate people from Syria,” a government spokesperson said in a statement.

The spokesperson added that intelligence and security agencies were continuing to monitor developments closely and were prepared for any Australians who attempted to return independently.

“People in this cohort need to know that if they have committed a crime and if they return to Australia they will be met with the full force of the law,” the statement said.Canberra said its “overriding priority” remained the safety of Australians and the protection of national interests, reflecting ongoing political sensitivity surrounding the possible return of families linked to members of the extremist group Daesh.

Roj Camp, located in northeastern Syria, houses women and children associated with suspected Daesh fighters following the collapse of the group’s territorial control in Iraq and Syria.

The families reported this week are believed to be part of a group of 34 Australians who were unable to leave the camp during a failed repatriation attempt in February, reportedly due to coordination issues involving Syrian authorities.

At the time, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the government would not provide assistance, using the phrase: “You make your bed, you lie in it,” to describe Canberra’s position.The return of Daesh-linked families has remained highly divisive in Australia, with some lawmakers and security officials warning that repatriation could create long-term domestic security risks.

Humanitarian organizations, however, have argued that women and especially children trapped in the camps face deteriorating living conditions, legal limbo, and prolonged statelessness.In 2023, Save the Children Australia filed legal action on behalf of 11 women and 20 children in Roj Camp, seeking government intervention to secure their return.

Australia’s Federal Court ruled against the group, finding that the government did not exercise legal control over the detainees’ confinement in Syria and therefore was not obligated to repatriate them.

Australia has previously repatriated some women and children from Syrian detention camps under earlier operations, but officials have remained cautious, balancing humanitarian concerns against domestic political and security pressures.

The latest developments suggest that any return of Australian citizens from Roj Camp will likely proceed without direct government facilitation, under close scrutiny from law enforcement and intelligence agencies upon arrival.

Emir Balat, 18, and Ibrahim Kayumi, 19, both from the Philadelphia area, entered their pleas during a brief court appearance following their arrest over an alleged March 7 incident targeting an anti-Islam demonstration outside Gracie Mansion, according to court filings and statements from federal prosecutors.

Authorities allege the two men traveled from Pennsylvania to New York with the intent to carry out an attack on the protest, which was organized by activist Jake Lang, a critic of Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

Prosecutors said the defendants deployed two improvised explosive devices containing triacetone triperoxide (TATP) and shrapnel, but the devices failed to detonate.No injuries were reported, and law enforcement officers detained the suspects shortly after the attempted attack.

The mayor and his wife were not present at the residence at the time, officials said.According to a federal complaint, investigators recovered dashcam footage from the suspects’ vehicle in which they allegedly discussed plans to kill as many as 60 people in an effort to “start terror.”

Prosecutors also said the defendants told police they were motivated by the Daesh group.Balat’s legal counsel declined to comment following the hearing, while attorneys representing Kayumi did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The case highlights ongoing concerns among U.S. authorities over self-radicalized individuals and the use of easily assembled explosive materials such as TATP, which has been used in several past attacks due to its relative accessibility despite its volatility.

The defendants are scheduled to return to court on June 16.

The three men, taken to Syria by their parents at the age of 11 or 12, were allegedly forced to participate in propaganda activities, policing duties and combat roles under Islamic State, according to legal filings submitted in France.

A source familiar with the case said the detainees are seeking recognition as victims of a war crime due to their recruitment as minors.Their lawyers, Marie Dose and Matthieu Bagard, said in a joint statement that the French authorities were failing to uphold obligations under international conventions prohibiting the use of child soldiers.

They argued that the men’s transfer to Iraq and continued detention amounted to inhumane treatment rather than victim protection.The detainees are among approximately 5,700 suspected Islamic State fighters of multiple nationalities transferred from Syria to Iraqi custody earlier this year, following shifts in territorial control in northern Syria.

France has opened investigations into the three men for alleged terrorism-related offenses committed during their time in Syria.The lawyers contend that, instead of pursuing prosecution, French authorities should prioritize repatriation and rehabilitation, citing the circumstances under which the individuals were recruited and their age at the time.

Hundreds of French citizens joined the Islamic State after it seized large areas of Iraq and Syria in 2014 and declared a so-called caliphate. Iraqi authorities, supported by a U.S.-led coalition, declared victory over the group in 2017, while Kurdish-led forces in Syria defeated its remaining strongholds in 2019.

Since then, thousands of suspected fighters and their families have been held in detention facilities across Syria and Iraq. Kurdish authorities in Syria have repeatedly called on foreign governments to repatriate their nationals, but most Western countries, including France, have proceeded cautiously, often handling returns on a case-by-case basis.

The recent transfer of detainees to Iraq has renewed scrutiny over their legal status and future, particularly in cases involving individuals recruited as minors.

Al-Sharaa met Starmer at 10 Downing Street, marking the first visit by a Syrian head of state to London since former president Bashar Assad traveled to the UK in 2002.According to a Downing Street spokesperson, discussions covered migration returns, border security and efforts to combat people-smuggling networks.

Starmer also welcomed steps taken by Damascus against Daesh, citing progress in counter-terrorism cooperation between the two countries.The talks also addressed broader regional stability concerns alongside economic cooperation.

The visit comes as Syria seeks foreign investment to rebuild infrastructure damaged during years of civil war. Al-Sharaa is expected to hold further meetings with senior British officials during his stay.

He was accompanied by Foreign Affairs Minister Asaad Hassan Al-Shaibani and Economy Minister Nidal Al-Shaar.European outreach continuesAl-Sharaa arrived in London following a visit to Germany, where he met Chancellor Friedrich Merz, as part of a broader diplomatic push to re-engage European partners.

No specific agreements were announced following the London meeting.

Sharaa, whose forces ousted longtime ruler Bashar Assad late last year, is set to meet U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday. The visit marks the first by a Syrian head of state to the United States since the country’s independence in 1946, analysts said.

The interim Syrian leader previously met Trump in Riyadh in May during the U.S. president’s regional tour.

Washington’s envoy to Syria, Tom Barrack, said earlier this month that Sharaa was expected to sign an agreement for Syria to join the international U.S.-led coalition against the Daesh (Islamic State) group.

According to a diplomatic source in Damascus, the United States also plans to establish a military base near the Syrian capital “to coordinate humanitarian aid and observe developments between Syria and Israel.”

Delisting and Diplomatic Shifts

The U.S. State Department’s decision to remove Sharaa from the terrorism blacklist on Friday had been widely anticipated.

State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said Sharaa’s government had made progress in addressing key American demands, including cooperation on locating missing U.S. citizens and eliminating any remaining chemical weapons stockpiles.

“These actions are being taken in recognition of the progress demonstrated by the Syrian leadership after the departure of Bashar Assad and more than 50 years of repression under the Assad regime,” Pigott said.

He added that removing Sharaa from the blacklist would promote “regional security and stability as well as an inclusive, Syrian-led and Syrian-owned political process.”

Crackdown on Daesh

Syria’s interior ministry announced on Saturday that it had carried out 61 raids and made 71 arrests in a “proactive campaign to neutralize the threat” of Daesh, according to the state-run SANA news agency.

The ministry said the operations targeted suspected Islamic State sleeper cells across several provinces, including Aleppo, Idlib, Hama, Homs, Deir ez-Zor, Raqqa, and Damascus.

Following his arrival in Washington, Sharaa met with representatives of Syrian community organizations in the U.S. capital, Syrian media reported.

In a lighthearted moment ahead of his departure, Syrian Foreign Minister posted a video on social media showing Sharaa playing basketball with U.S. CENTCOM Commander Gen. Brad Cooper and Kevin Lambert, head of the international anti-Daesh coalition in Iraq, with the caption: “Work hard, play harder.”

From Rebel Commander to Statesman

Sharaa’s visit to Washington follows his appearance at the United Nations General Assembly in September — his first trip to U.S. soil — where he became the first Syrian president in decades to address the assembly in New York.

On Thursday, the U.S. led a Security Council vote to lift U.N. sanctions against him.

Once affiliated with Al-Qaeda, Sharaa formerly led the militant group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), which was delisted as a terrorist organization by Washington in July.

Since seizing power, Syria’s new leadership has sought to distance itself from its extremist roots and project a more moderate, internationally acceptable image.

“The White House visit is further testament to the U.S. commitment to the new Syria and a hugely symbolic moment for the country’s new leader, who thus marks another step in his astonishing transformation from militant leader to global statesman,” said Michael Hanna, U.S. Program Director at the International Crisis Group.

Reconstruction Challenges Ahead

Sharaa is expected to seek international funding for Syria’s post-war reconstruction during his visit. The country faces enormous economic and humanitarian challenges after 13 years of civil conflict.

In October, the World Bank estimated the cost of rebuilding Syria at a “conservative best estimate” of $216 billion.

As Washington and Damascus cautiously rebuild diplomatic ties, Sharaa’s visit signals what many observers see as a historic turning point — both for Syria’s reemergence on the world stage and for a region long defined by conflict and isolation.

The sites were inaugurated on Wednesday in the presence of Iraq’s Minister of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities, the President of the Sunni Waqf, the Governor of Nineveh, and the Chaldean and Syriac Orthodox archbishops. Local residents joined representatives of international partners who helped fund and carry out the restoration.

The projects were financed by the International Alliance for the Protection of Heritage in Conflict Areas (ALIPH) as part of its Mosul Mosaic programme, launched in 2019 with the Iraqi State Board of Antiquities and Heritage (SBAH). The initiative aims to rebuild the city’s cultural and religious landmarks destroyed between 2014 and 2017.

“These monuments, once symbols of Mosul’s diversity, now stand as symbols of its resilience,” said Bariza Khiari, chair of the ALIPH Foundation Board. “Their restoration shows what can be achieved through determination and cooperation.”

The Al-Tahira Chaldean Church, an 18th-century site revered by both Christians and Muslims, has regained its signature dome and ornamental carvings that were lost during the Daesh occupation.

The Mar Toma Syriac Orthodox Church, dating back to the seventh century, was rebuilt after being vandalised and partially destroyed during the battle for Mosul. Its thirteenth-century marble “Door of the Twelve Apostles” has been fully restored.

The Al-Raabiya Mosque, constructed in 1766 and badly damaged in 2017, now once again displays its distinctive Ottoman-era stone mihrab decorated with geometric motifs.

Since 2018, ALIPH has funded nearly 50 projects across Iraq, investing more than $25 million in Mosul alone. The Mosul Mosaic programme has also supported the rehabilitation of the city’s museum, scheduled to reopen in 2026, and several other historic sites including the Al-Masfi Mosque and the Beit al-Tutunji House.

Founded in Geneva in 2017, ALIPH supports the protection and restoration of cultural heritage in conflict zones. Backed by countries including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Morocco, and France, the foundation has financed more than 550 projects in 54 countries.

For the people of Mosul, the reopening of these sacred sites represents more than reconstruction. It marks, at last, the return of life to the city’s war-scarred heart.

The webinar focused on some of the key-points such as: Abraham Accords, Israel-Pakistan relations, the rise of Islamism in Middle-East, the latest reforms taking place under Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the constant attacks Saudi Arabia has to face from the western media, etc.

The live video had technical issue from 3:40 – 4:20. Please use the YouTube link as a substitute.

Guests

1 – Lt. Col. Anthony (Tony) Shaffer. He is a Senior Fellow and President of the London Center for Policy Research, and he served as Defense Intelligence Officer for 28 years. He was also Advisory Board Member of Trump2020 campaign. Lt. Col. Shaffer has appeared on Fox News, CNN, and other major TV and radio programs, and has been interviewed by The New York Times and other publications on pre-9/11 operations focused on Al Qaeda. He is the author of Operation Dark Heart, and the novel The Last Line.

2 – Ahmed Quraishi, who is a journalist, commentator, and author, with presence in the media of the Middle East and Pakistan. He covered the Afghanistan war for Aljazeera (Arabic), and was embedded with U.S. military in Iraq. He has hosted foreign policy related television talk shows. He covered events in Lebanon, Israel, Jordan, Syria, and Iraq. Mr. Quraishi has participated in academic exercises involving Pakistani and American militaries (2006); joined in a Sino-Pakistani academic exchange in Beijing (2005); and sat in closed-door academic discussions organized in Kuwait City by U.S. and Gulf institutions on strategies for post-Saddam Iraq (in 2000, before the war).

3 – Dalia Ziada, who is an Egyptian author/writer, and award-winning blogger. She is the author of “The Curious Case of the Three-Legged Wolf – Egypt: Military, Islamism, and Liberal Democracy”. She currently works as the Director of the Liberal Democracy Institute, a think tank advising policymakers in Egypt and the Middle East. Dalia’s story and struggle for liberal democratization in Egypt is profiled in American best-selling books such as: Robin Wright’s “Rock the Casbah: Rage and Rebellion across the Islamic World”. Ziada worked as the Executive Director of Ibn Khaldun Center for Democratic Studies; and regional director for The American Islamic Congress. Currently, she leads the Liberal Democracy Institute. In addition, Ziada is a board member of the Foreign Affairs Committee at the National Council for Women in Egypt.

4 – Khaled Homoud Alshareef, who is a Saudi political analyst. Khaled holds PhD in Business and he earned Masters in Philosophy. He often writes about Islamism, Islamist factions and modern Terrorism.

5 – Mohammed Abbasi, who is Director of Association of British Muslims. He worked as a peace activist and conflict resolution specialist. He is part of Football for Peace Global, and he advises sports for peace organizations internationally. He has met Prime Ministers and Presidents including British, Pakistani and Indonesian. Abbasi also speaks on military strategy such as the Chinese Art of War which is used by many military academies around the world and also speaks on mind mapping, memory skills and coaches on meditation and mindfulness.

Moderator

The webinar was moderated by Zahack Tanvir, who is a Saudi-based Non Resident Indian (NRI). He is professionally an ERP Consultant. He also holds Diploma in Journalism from London School of Journalism. Tanvir founded The Milli Chronicle in September 2018, and he’s been working on a non-commercial basis to publish the works of notable researchers and Think-Tank groups, mainly focused on exposing the Islamist and other extremist factions.

Campaigners have hailed the process in Germany as a first step toward justice for thousands of Syrians…

Should former members of the Syrian security forces who have defected from President Bashar al-Assad’s government be prosecuted for war crimes, or should they serve as key witnesses in an effort to bring senior officials to justice?

The question has divided Syrian refugees and exiles who have fled a civil war in which hundreds of thousands of people have been killed and that has been marked by atrocities since it broke out in 2011.

In Germany, home to 600,000 Syrian refugees, prosecutors have used universal jurisdiction laws that allow them to prosecute crimes against humanity committed anywhere in the world to seek justice for victims of alleged torture and extrajudicial killings by Assad’s forces.

In the first case to be brought to a German court, the trial opened in April of two former Syrian intelligence officers on charges of torture and sexual assault.

The two suspects had defected in 2012 and were granted asylum in Germany. Many of the Syrians now in Germany are asking if the defectors are friends or foes.

“The trial in Germany is wrong, strategically and morally. Defectors risked their lives to join the opposition and discredit the regime,” said Fawaz Tello, a veteran Syrian dissident.

“Who in their right mind is going to defect now when they see that people who had defected in the first months of the revolution are being put on trial?”

The Syrian government has regularly rejected reports of torture and extrajudicial killings documented by international human rights groups.

Justice for Victims

Mahmoud Alabdulah, a former colonel in the Syrian army’s elite 4th Division, is one of hundreds of defectors who have given testimonies to German and French judicial officials collecting evidence of alleged war crimes by the Syrian government during the still-unresolved war.

He says a military card identifying his rank is the most valuable item of the few belongings he carried when he left Syria six years ago.

The pink, plastic-covered piece of paper has given more credence to testimonies he delivered in France and Germany against the Syrian government, he says.

“I saw soldiers being executed for refusing to open fire on protesters and heavy artillery fired toward civilian areas,” said Alabdulah, a 56-year-old father of five, rolling a cigarette in a modest apartment in the eastern German city of Gera where he lives with his wife.

“I remember the night I decided to defect: February 13, 2012,” Alabdulah said. “I was praying in my room, lights off, at the Saboura military base (west of Damascus) and I said, ‘God, I don’t want to take part in such crimes, please help me get out of here’.”

Campaigners have hailed the process in Germany as a first step toward justice for thousands of Syrians who say they were tortured in government facilities after attempts to establish an international tribunal for Syria failed.

“No one has the right to tell victims they should not seek justice,” said Anwar al-Bunni of the European Centre for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) which is representing victims in the torture trial.

“Ignoring suspected war criminals is equivalent to white-washing the Assad regime.”

The main defendant in the trial, Anwar R., is charged with 58 murders in a Damascus prison where prosecutors say at least 4,000 opposition activists were tortured in 2011 and 2012. He has denied all the charges.

He was an intelligence colonel in Assad’s security apparatus but defected in 2012 to Turkey, where he became active in the opposition Free Syrian Army. He came to Germany in 2014 and was granted asylum.

The dissident Tello said Anwar R. was a member of an opposition delegation at U.N.-sponsored talks in Geneva six years ago aimed at ending the conflict, which makes his trial a “humiliation” for opposition groups marred by infighting.

Former army colonel Alabdulah questioned whether it was realistic for everyone who committed a crime to face justice.

Asked if he feared charges could be filed against him, Alabdulah told Reuters his conscience was clear. He fought against Assad’s forces and Islamic State militants before he fled to Turkey, he said.

“We are not even close to winning the war. Even if we did, there should be some kind of a general amnesty,” he said. “The Assad family and its most loyal lieutenants should be tried.”

Daesh’s activity in Turkey is well known as the Eurasian country’s police have conducted operations against cells of the terrorist group. 

The United States has revealed the identity of a major money facilitator for the Daesh terrorist group in Turkey as part of the activity against the jihadist group’s global financial networks.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the U.S. Treasury Department noted that Daesh’s supplier Adnan Muhammad Amin al-Rawi had financially assisted the terrorist group with financial, material or technological support.

“This action coincides with the 13th meeting of the Counter Daesh Finance Group (CIFG), which includes more than 60 countries and international organizations, and plays a key role in coordinating efforts to deny Daesh access to the international financial system and eliminate his sources of income,” the official agency said. 

Along these lines, the U.S. Treasury requires that all property and interests of relevant persons in the U.S. or in the possession or control of U.S. persons be blocked and reported to OFAC.

In addition, any foreign financial institution that knowingly conducts or facilitates any substantial transaction on behalf of individuals and entities designated by OFAC would be subject to Washington sanctions.

Daesh’s activity in Turkey is well known as the Eurasian country’s police have conducted operations against cells of the terrorist group. On July 19, Turkish police forces arrested 27 people in 15 districts of Istanbul for having links with Daesh; they were suspected of preparing to carry out an attack.

According to Colin Clarke, a senior investigator into terrorist financing networks with the Soufan Group, Daesh’s financial networks are, as expected, still active in Turkey. “Daesh has laundered its illicit profits in Turkey through money service businesses and intermediaries who seek to profit from illegally obtained profits. I believe Daesh’s financial networks could help sustain the group for the next decade,” Colin Clarke told Arab News. 

Since last year, Turkey’s financial crime watchdog MASAK has been pursuing the terrorist group’s illegal money transfer system, pointing to those accused of transferring money to Daesh through the Hawala chain as suspects. Jewellery companies or exchange offices based in Turkey and Syria are believed to be acting as a front for these illegal money transfers.

Last November, Washington blacklisted three companies based in Turkey and two Turkish individuals on charges of providing financial and logistical support to Daesh in Syria and Iraq through currency exchange offices and import/export operations. The sanctions are designed to freeze any assets on U.S. soil in the hands of named individuals and companies and to prohibit Americans from doing business with them.

Despite the territorial defeats suffered by Daesh, such as the one in Syria, the terrorist group has found new ways to survive, such as various businesses, smuggling, donations, kidnapping and extortion to wealthy people in the areas where it operates in the eastern desert of Syria and the border region between Syria and Iraq.

“The international community realizes that exhausting Daesh’s financial resources is a major factor in neutralizing the group’s military operations. Therefore, CIFG has been monitoring and sanctioning some money transfer offices that are involved in illegitimate activities and operating in both Syria and Iraq,” said Orwa Ajjoub, a research affiliate at the Centre for Middle Easter Studies at Lund University.

Ajjoub believes that the difficulty in achieving this lies in the ability to control the process of transferring remittances from the point of sending to the moment of receipt by the beneficiaries. “Other ways of channelling resources to Daesh’s fighters include social networking campaigns and donations in crypto currencies, which require rigorous cyber security measures to contain them,” he told Arab News.

Thus, Turkey remains in the eye of the storm because of alleged links with jihadist elements. In this sense, various media have reported on the connections of the Eurasian country with mercenaries in pay assigned to groups linked in the past to terrorist entities such as Daesh or Al-Qaeda, which it uses to its benefit in the wars in Syria and Libya, where it takes an active part within the Turkish strategy aimed at strengthening its geostrategic position in the Mediterranean and the Middle East and at benefiting from the exploitation of economic zones in relation to gas and oil prospecting.

Article first published on Atalayar.