UN report reveals 5 assassination attempts on Syrian President and two ministers thwarted within a year

A formal report issued by the office of the United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, revealed serious security details concerning the safety of the Syrian leadership. It confirmed that Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa and Interior Minister Anas Khattab and Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani were subjected to five failed assassination attempts during the past year. The UN report clarified that all these operations were thwarted before achieving their objectives, indicating that they come within the context of continuous attempts to destabilize the country's new political structure.

According to data provided by the UN Counter-Terrorism Office, these attempts primarily focused on the northern province of Aleppo and the southern province of Daraa, regions that witnessed significant security tensions during 2025. Although the report did not specify exact dates for each operation, it confirmed that President Al-Sharaa was a direct target in attacks that occurred in both provinces, reflecting the armed groups' determination to target the head of state.

The report held a group called 'Saraya Ansar al-Sunnah' responsible for carrying out these attempts, describing it as merely an operational front for ISIS, allowing it to evade direct responsibility. UN sources stated that this tactic provides the organization with greater flexibility in field movements and allows it to continue its subversive activities under different names to avoid direct international pressure.

In a related context, international experts indicated that ISIS still possesses a human force estimated at about 3,000 fighters active in the border region between Iraq and Syria, with most of them concentrated in northern and northeastern Syria. These elements exploit security vacuums and political uncertainty to launch surprise attacks targeting security forces and government officials, in an attempt to undermine national recovery efforts.

The report touched upon the field escalation witnessed in the Palmyra region last December, where an armed ambush led to the killing of two American soldiers and a civilian, in addition to injuring a number of Syrian security personnel. This incident then prompted the American administration to intensify its military operations in cooperation with local forces to pursue the remnants of the organization and destroy its hideouts in the Syrian desert and rugged areas.

On the humanitarian and security front related to the detainees' file, the report revealed the continued detention of more than 25,000 people in Al-Hol and Roj camps until the end of last year, with women and children constituting the largest proportion of residents. The report indicated the start of transfer operations for a number of the organization's detainees from northeastern Syria to Iraqi territory to ensure their detention in more secure facilities, with Baghdad pledging to subject them to fair trials.

It is worth noting that the Syrian government announced last November its official accession to the international coalition to combat terrorism, in a step aimed at coordinating international efforts to eliminate the threats of ISIS. These developments come at a time when Damascus seeks to strengthen its control over all Syrian territories and secure the borders, especially after the recent ceasefire agreements that allowed the Syrian army to take over positions that were managed by other forces.

Assassination attempts represent additional evidence of ISIS's endeavor to undermine the new Syrian government and exploit security vacuums.