Shafaq News – Damascus

Syrian authorities said on Thursday they carried out two separate security operations in Rif Dimashq (Damascus countryside) targeting cells linked to ISIS, resulting in the arrest of one senior leader and the killing of another.

Brigadier General Ahmad al-Dalati, head of internal security in the province, said specialized units, working with the General Intelligence Service and in coordination with the US-led Global Coalition, conducted a security operation in the city of Muadamiyat al-Sham following “intensive intelligence surveillance.”

Al-Dalati said the operation led to the arrest of Taha al-Zoubi, also known as “Abu Omar Tibya,” whom authorities identified as ISIS’ so-called “governor (Wali) of Damascus,” along with several of his aides. Security forces also seized an explosive belt and military-grade weapons during the raid.

In a separate statement, Syria’s Interior Ministry said security forces carried out another operation in the town of Al-Buwayda in Rif Dimashq, killing Mohammad Shahada, known as “Abu Omar Shaddad,” a senior ISIS leader and the group’s so-called “governor of Hauran.”