ISIS claimed responsibility for targeting the headquarters of the Internal Security Command in the city of Raqqa in northern Syria.

The group said in a statement on Tuesday (June 16th) that two of its members attacked the headquarters of the Internal Security Command west of Raqqa on Monday, and the operation, according to the organization, resulted in at least four deaths and injuries.

The group described the operation as "a daring attack on a heavily fortified security square that houses the central security headquarters of the US-led Syrian regime."

The fighters reached the main gate of the fortified headquarters and were able to enter it and clash with its members at close range, he said.

The Ministry of Interior said yesterday that security forces confronted two suicide attackers in Raqqa, clashed with them and managed to neutralize one of them, while the other blew himself up with an explosive vest after surrounding him.

One ISF member was killed in the blast and three other members were injured who were taken to hospitals for treatment.

The Ministry of Interior dismantles 7 cells of the "Islamic State" organization

The Ministry of Interior revealed that 235 people suspected of belonging to the "Islamic State" organization were arrested and 7 cells linked to the organization listed on international terrorism lists were dismantled.

This came in a statement published by the ministry on its official identifiers, on the evening of Monday, June 8, on the outcome of the security operations of the Counter-Terrorism Department against the "Islamic State" as part of the efforts aimed at enhancing security, stability and combating terrorist activities.

Security operations led to "the arrest of 235 people, including 198 Syrians and 37 foreigners, in addition to the dismantling of 7 cells linked to the group", the statistics showed, explaining that the security services carried out "seven raids and pursuits, which were distributed and resulted in the seizure of weapons and equipment suspected of being used in activities linked to the group".

According to the ministry's statement, the highest number of detainees was recorded during the month of April with 99 detainees, followed by March with 80 detainees, then in May with 56 detainees, including 71 in Deir Ezzor and 35 in Aleppo, and the ministry did not specify in detail the nationalities of the detainees.

About 20,000 ISIS mercenaries flee in Syria

An official report released by the U.S. Department of Defense's Inspector General for Operation Inherent Resolve, in cooperation with intelligence services, said that between 15,000 and 20,000 people suspected of being linked to the Islamic State and their families have fled after security chaos and mass escapes from camps and prisons in northeastern Syria.

The newly released US report said US assessments had identified a near-complete evacuation of the sprawling al-Hol camp, with its population falling from about 23,400 to just under 1,500, as a result of mass fleeing and organised smuggling of women and families linked to the group.

Nearly 1,500 hardline prisoners escaped from al-Shaddadi prison, amid security chaos that accompanied military withdrawals and a change in control of territory, allowing the group elements to exploit loopholes and disappear into vast desert areas, the report said.

Decline in Regulation Operations

A report by the Middle East Institute reported that the number of ISIS attacks decreased by 17% during the months following the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) military losses to Syrian government forces (i.e., from January to April 2026), and then this percentage also declined to 67% after the departure of US forces (during the period from April to June 2026).

The institute explained that the group carried out 8 attacks across Syria last May, which resulted in the death of 4 people, which is below the average of the attacks it carried out in 2025, which totaled 29 attacks and resulted in the death of 15 people on a monthly average, and this represents the largest decline in the number of attacks and deaths since the emergence of the group in Syria in 2013.

He pointed out that 90% of the attacks during 2025 took place in areas under the control of the SDF, by exploiting the growing state of anger among Arab tribes towards the SDF-affiliated authorities, according to the "Middle East Institute".