SDF warns ISIS threat persists in northern Syria

Shafaq News – Qamishli

The threat of ISIS persists in northern and eastern Syria despite the group’s heavy losses since 2019, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) warned on Monday.

In a statement, the SDF said ISIS had exploited the chaos of the Syrian conflict since 2011 to establish itself as a major threat to the region’s populations, before being pushed back in battles such as Kobani, Raqqa, and Baghouz.

The group’s sleeper cells, according to the statement, carried out 153 attacks between December 8, 2024, and September 20, 2025, underscoring its attempts to reorganize and expand. In response, SDF units, backed by the US-led Coalition, conducted 70 operations over the past ten months, including three large-scale sweeps. These efforts led to the arrest of 95 ISIS members—three of them leaders—the killing of six militants, and the seizure of weapons and documents. The attacks left 30 SDF fighters dead, 12 others wounded, and six civilians killed, the statement said.

The command stressed that ISIS “remains a local and international threat” and called for sustained military pressure and international cooperation. The SDF concluded that defeating ISIS requires not only military operations but also reconstruction projects to cut off extremist ideology at its roots.