The interim government in Syria says it has had the security forces carry out a large-scale operation against the terrorist militia Islamic State (IS). As the spokesman for the Interior Ministry in Damascus announced, according to the state news agency Sana, there were more than 60 raids in different parts of the country. More than 70 people were arrested. A member of the terrorist militia was killed and a member of the security forces was injured.
The announcement comes just a day before Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa meets US President Donald Trump in Washington. The planned visit to the White House on Monday is the first ever by a Syrian president. He arrived in the US capital at the weekend.
It is expected that al-Sharaa could announce the entry of Syrian government troops into the US-led alliance against IS. The statement from the Syrian Interior Ministry is likely to further reinforce this impression.
Al-Sharaa wants to integrate Syria into the international community
In 2014, IS overran large areas in Syria and neighboring Iraq. At times he controlled about a third of Syria and 40 percent of Iraq. The USA led an operation to fight the terrorist militia. It is considered to have been defeated militarily, but it is estimated that around 2,500 IS fighters are still active in both countries and are also carrying out attacks.
Syria was internationally isolated for years under the rule of former ruler Bashar al-Assad due to the bloody civil war. At the beginning of December, a rebel alliance led by the Islamist group Haiat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) overthrew Assad. HTS leader al-Sharaa now leads the country as interim president. He is keen to reintegrate Syria into the international community, in particular to get the economy going again. The USA wants to link the country, which was closely allied with Moscow during Assad’s rule, more closely to the West.
