Two members of Syria’s internal security forces were killed and five others hurt after a gunfight with a suspected ISIL (ISIS) cell during a raid on the outskirts of Damascus, the Interior Ministry said. The fighting broke out on Thursday morning in the town of Rankous, in the western Damascus countryside.
Security forces launched the operation against the cell as part of a string of raids the government has carried out to break up ISIL networks and stop attacks.
Ministry describes armed standoff and seized weapons
The ministry said the suspects refused to give themselves up and opened fire, which set off the clashes. It said five alleged ISIL members were killed and six were arrested, and that weapons and explosive belts were seized.
Residents give a different account of the clashes
A correspondent reporting from Syria said residents told her the shooting began around 6am (03:00 GMT) and lasted two to three hours. She said some of the wounded security personnel were seriously hurt.
Residents said the group numbered about nine people, fewer than officials had reported. They said two members were killed, two others escaped, and an unknown number were injured. Local media, citing residents, reported that security forces imposed a curfew and detained several people.
Earlier plots and arrest of alleged Homs commander
The ministry reportedly also foiled an ISIL plot in the Damascus countryside and dismantled a cell in the Houla area of Homs earlier this month. According to local media, those plots aimed at places of worship and security patrols.
On October 6, the ministry announced the arrest of Khaled Raed Birouni, also known as Abu Hassan Dushka, in the town of Hujaira. Authorities describe him as the group’s top military commander for Homs and accuse him of planning several attacks there, including a December 2025 bombing of a mosque in Wadi al-Dhahab during Friday prayers. Syria’s Health Ministry said that attack killed eight people and wounded 18.
The correspondent said ISIL has repeatedly attacked Syrian security forces, usually targeting buses and vehicles carrying personnel, and has occasionally struck civilians. Syria joined the 90-member international coalition against ISIL in November, six years after Syrian Kurdish-led forces led the territorial defeat of the group’s strongholds in the northeast.
