The Syrian intelligence agency announced the arrest of a leader in the Islamic State group, known as “Abu al-Harith al-Iraqi.”

On Saturday, February 15, the Syrian news agency (SANA) quoted a Syrian Intelligence Service source that it had managed to capture “Abu al-Harith al-Iraqi”, a leader in the Islamic State.

According to SANA, “Abu al-Harith” held significant positions in what is known as “the Province of Iraq,” including overseeing the file of new arrivals and serving as the deputy head of logistics, and he was involved in numerous attacks carried out by the Islamic State group.

The source from the intelligence agency said that “Abu al-Harith” was behind the planning of several operations, notably the assassination of former leader in Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), Maysar al-Jubouri, nicknamed “Abu Maria al-Qahtani,” along with several other assassinations.

“Al-Qahtani” was killed following the explosion of an explosive device that targeted him in the Sarmada area of northern Idlib in April 2024.

The head of the Higher Council for Iftaa in Tahrir al-Sham, Abdul Rahim Atoun, stated at the time that “al-Qahtani” was killed as a result of an attack using an explosive belt, carried out by a member of the Islamic State group.

The source told SANA that the cell, whose plan to target the shrine of Sayyidah Zaynab in the vicinity of the capital Damascus was foiled, was operating under the direction of the leader “Abu al-Harith al-Iraqi.”

In January of the past year, the intelligence agency announced the foiling of an attempt to detonate explosives inside the Sayyidah Zaynab shrine in the Syrian capital, blaming the Islamic State group for planning the explosion.

The operation resulted in the arrest of those involved in this attempt, and the intelligence classified the bombing attempt as a “large criminal act targeting the Syrian people.”

This operation is part of a series of actions to pursue the Islamic State’s cells in the region, where several of its members attempting to carry out operations in various areas have been arrested, according to the source.

The source did not specify the location where the leader of the Islamic State group was arrested.

The power of the Islamic State group diminished after reaching its peak between 2014 and 2017, following the International Coalition’s involvement in the battles against it, and its presence is now concentrated in the form of cells in the Syrian desert in central Syria.

The Islamic State has sleeper cells within Syrian regions, and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (the nucleus of the political and military authority in Syria now) continually announces the apprehension of leaders within its areas of influence in northwestern Syria.

Moreover, the prisons in Idlib, which were under the control of Tahrir al-Sham, contain many leaders of the Islamic State group.