In the northeastern Syrian city of Al-Dashisha, south of Hesekê, two local politicians were kidnapped and executed by gunmen. The victims are Sada al-Harmoush, co-chairwoman of the civil council of the Til Sheir (Tal al-Shayer) town, and her deputy Hind al-Khedr, who was also responsible for the economy committee. The perpetrators are unclear, but the crime pattern points to sleeper cells of the jihadist terrorist organization ISIS.

According to available information, Sada al-Harmoush and Hind al-Khedr were abducted during a raid on their home on Friday and taken to an unknown location. Neighbors observed at least eight heavily armed men allegedly involved in the abductions. Just hours after the abduction, local residents found the decapitated bodies of Harmoush and Khedr on a roadside not far from the center of al-Dashisha. Relatives reported that both women had recently been threatened in the name of the ISIS.

Targeted operations against ISIS structures

For months, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have been conducting targeted operations against structures of the ISIS militia, which has been reorganizing in the shadow of Turkish attacks against the northeastern Syrian autonomous region. Just earlier this week, an ISIS commander was captured during an operation by the YAT counterterrorism unit near Hesekê. The forty-year-old is responsible for attacks on SDF commanders and other figures. However, the geographical extent of the area and lack of technical resources make the fight against cell structures difficult. The invasion of Turkey, which began in the fall of 2019, has also massively strengthened ISIS. Jihadists who managed to retreat to the desert in the Syrian-Iraqi border region in the course of the "Cizîrê Storm" liberation offensive have been able to reorganize largely unchallenged and carry out attacks in both countries.