15 Killed in Syria Desert Ambush

ISIS suspected in latest attack

Officials suspect ISIS was behind yet another attack in the east Syrian desert on Sunday, ambushing and killing at least 15, including eight Syrian soldiers on the main highway through the desert area.

ISIS hasn’t claimed credit yet for this attack, but as a group overwhelmingly based out of the desert, they would be the most likely culprit. This is particularly true given how many attacks they’ve launched recently.

In recent years, ISIS went from controlling most of Syria to only having troops hiding in the deserts. Still fielding a substantial number of fighters, the group has recently tried to get back out of the deserts and reassert itself in meaningful towns.

So far, ISIS has been able to inflict casualties in ambushes, but has failed to retake any territory over the long term, usually just provoking airstrikes or counterattacks that send them back where they started.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.