At Least 33 Syrian Soldiers Killed in IS Ambush

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Facts

  • An Islamic State (IS)-claimed attack on a military bus outside the city of al-Mayadeen in Syria's eastern Deir ez-Zor governorate killed at least 33 government soldiers and wounded more than 10 on Thursday in one of the group's deadliest attacks in Syria this year.1
  • The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) claimed that "dozens of (other) soldiers" were missing after the attack in which the attackers surrounded the bus and opened fire.2
  • The Syrian desert, where most IS attacks take place, has seen an increased level of security incidents, as IS has launched a number of large attacks since the beginning of the year.3
  • Earlier this week, the SOHR claimed that an IS attack in Raqqa, the group's former capital in Syria, killed 10 Syrian soldiers and other pro-government fighters.4
  • Last week, IS announced the death of its leader, Abu al-Hussein al-Husseini al-Qurayshi, who headed the extremist organization in Syria since November, and named his successor. He was the fourth to be killed since the group's founder Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was killed in 2019 by US forces.5
  • Nearly 400 people in Syria have died due to IS' insurgency in the Syrian desert this year, including around 196 pro-government fighters. In 2014, IS took over large swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria but was soon defeated territorially a few years later.6

Sources: 1BBC News, 2CBS, 3Reuters, 4DW, 5Associated Press, and 6Middle East Eye.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by Arab News. IS is trying to assert that it is still relevant and still capable of launching deadly attacks like this one. The group's poisonous ideology, alongside the Syrian government's inability to effectively combat the group in the desert, has led to a potential resurgence as it continues to launch major attacks in Syria.
  • Narrative B, as provided by GIS Reports. While IS is still able to cause damage through heinous attacks like this one, the reality is that today, IS has few fighters across Iraq and Syria and has little capacity for a resurgence in the area. Instead, its threat is overshadowed by that of its franchise affiliates in Africa and parts of Central Asia. Refocusing on the new threat area is needed.