SOHR: ISIS Attacks Iranian Militias in Syria's Badia

An ISIS poster in the central Syrian town of Sukhnah is adorned with the flags of pro-government fighters after the Syrian government took control of the area (AFP)
An ISIS poster in the central Syrian town of Sukhnah is adorned with the flags of pro-government fighters after the Syrian government took control of the area (AFP)
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SOHR: ISIS Attacks Iranian Militias in Syria's Badia

An ISIS poster in the central Syrian town of Sukhnah is adorned with the flags of pro-government fighters after the Syrian government took control of the area (AFP)
An ISIS poster in the central Syrian town of Sukhnah is adorned with the flags of pro-government fighters after the Syrian government took control of the area (AFP)

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported a number of ISIS sudden attacks on posts of Iranian-backed militias and regime forces in the surrounding areas of Arak oil field in east Homs desert.

The attack was followed by clashes between the two sides, amid reports of casualties.

ISIS cells targeted a guard post of al-Qura Guards, militias backed by Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), on the bank of Euphrates river in al-Asharah city in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor, killing four Syrian militiamen and injuring others.

Earlier, a bomb planted by unknown gunmen believed to be of ISIS cells, exploded in the car carrying militiamen, near Wadha village of Maskanah town in the eastern countryside of Aleppo, according to the Observatory.

As a result, four Iranian-backed militiamen were killed, and two others injured.

ISIS also killed eight regime-backed militiamen in surprise attacks on their posts and checkpoints in different areas in the Syrian desert. In response, Russian jets executed tens of airstrikes on ISIS positions, leaving casualties.

Since March 2019, SOHR documented various ISIS attacks, bombings, and ambushes which resulted in the deaths of at least 1,339 regime soldiers and loyalists of various nationalities, including two Russians, and 145 Iranian-backed militiamen of non-Syrian nationalities.

Also, four civilians working in gas fields, 11 shepherds, and four other people were killed in ISIS attacks during the same period, according to the war monitor.

About 754 ISIS members were also killed in exchanged attacks and bombardment since March 2019.



At Least 15 Killed in Suicide Bombing at Damascus Church

A Syrian man reacts inside Mar Elias church where a suicide bomber detonated himself in Dweila in the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, Sunday June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)
A Syrian man reacts inside Mar Elias church where a suicide bomber detonated himself in Dweila in the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, Sunday June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)
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At Least 15 Killed in Suicide Bombing at Damascus Church

A Syrian man reacts inside Mar Elias church where a suicide bomber detonated himself in Dweila in the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, Sunday June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)
A Syrian man reacts inside Mar Elias church where a suicide bomber detonated himself in Dweila in the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, Sunday June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)

At least 15 people were killed when a suicide bomber blew himself up at the Mar Elias Church in the Dweila neighborhood of Syria's capital Damascus on Sunday, security sources said.

Syria's interior ministry said the suicide bomber was an ISIS member. He entered the church, opened fire and then detonated his explosive vest, the ministry added in a statement.

A security source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said two men were involved in the attack, including the one who blew himself up.

Syria's state news agency cited the health ministry as putting the preliminary casualty toll at nine dead and 13 injured.

Some local media reported that children were among the casualties.

A livestream from the site by Syria's civil defense, the White Helmets, showed scenes of destruction from within the church, including a bloodied floor and shattered church pews and masonry.

Syrian Information Minister Hamza Mostafa condemned the attack, calling it a terrorist attack.

“This cowardly act goes against the civic values that brings us together,” he said in a post on X. “We will not back down from our commitment to equal citizenship ... and we also affirm the state’s pledge to exert all its efforts to combat criminal organizations and to protect society from all attacks threatening its safety.”