Syrian authorities have launched a security operation targeting a cell affiliated with the Daesh terror group in Rankous, in the western Damascus countryside, the Interior Ministry said on Thursday.
The Internal Security Forces said the operation was being conducted in cooperation with the General Intelligence Service. Authorities did not immediately disclose the number of suspects, the cell’s activities or the outcome of the operation.
On October 6, the interior ministry announced the arrest of Khaled Raed Birouni, also known as Abu Hassan Dushka, during a security operation in Hujaira, in the Damascus countryside.
According to security information cited by the ministry, Birouni served as the senior military commander of Daesh’s self-proclaimed “Homs Province”.
The ministry accused him of planning and overseeing several attacks in Homs, including the preparation and use of explosive devices and sectarian attacks.
It also held him responsible for the December 2025 bombing of the Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque in Homs’ Wadi al Dhahab neighbourhood.
Syria’s Ministry of Health said eight people were killed and 18 wounded when an explosive device detonated inside the mosque during Friday prayers.
Since the fall of Bashar al Assad’s regime on December 8 2024, Syrian authorities have pursued wanted individuals and carried out security operations against armed groups as part of efforts to restore stability and establish state control over weapons.
