Fri May 30 13:19:57 UTC 2025: Okay, here’s a news article summarizing and rewriting the provided text:
**ISIS Claims First Attack on Syrian Army Since Assad’s Fall, Signaling Escalation**
**DAMASCUS, Syria** – ISIS has claimed responsibility for a bombing targeting the Syrian army, marking the group’s first direct assault on government forces since the fall of Bashar al-Assad, according to analysts. The attack, which took place on May 22 in the al-Safa desert region of Sweida province, reportedly resulted in casualties among Syrian soldiers.
In a statement released Thursday, ISIS stated its fighters detonated an explosive device targeting a “vehicle of the apostate regime.” This attack follows another bombing earlier in the week, claimed by ISIS, that targeted the U.S.-backed Kurdish-led Free Syrian Army in the same region, resulting in one death and three injuries.
While there has been no official response from the Syrian government or the Free Syrian Army, analysts view these attacks as a significant escalation by ISIS. The group considers the new government in Damascus, which replaced Assad in December, illegitimate. Although some members of the new Syrian government once had ties to al-Qaeda – a rival of ISIS – they broke with the group nearly a decade ago.
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed this was the first ISIS-claimed operation targeting the new Syrian military. Previously, ISIS has primarily focused its attacks on the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the northeast.
ISIS was territorially defeated in Syria in 2019 but retains sleeper cells, particularly in the country’s central and eastern deserts. Despite its diminished capacity, these latest attacks suggest the group may be seeking to reassert itself amidst shifting alliances and weakening state control in the region. This new development raises concerns about the potential for increased instability and violence in Syria.
First Piper 