The Islamic State group (IS) has called on supporters to launch attacks against Syria’s government and national army, according to an audio message released on Saturday — the group’s first public statement from its spokesperson in two years.
In the recording, circulated through IS media channels, spokesman Abu Huzaifa al-Ansari said the organisation’s priority was now to overthrow President Ahmed al-Sharaa, describing his administration as “apostate and secular”.
Al-Sharaa — formerly known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani during his time leading al-Qaeda-linked forces — became Syria’s interim president in January 2025 after the removal of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. He founded the al-Nusra Front, al-Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate, in 2012, which later fought IS. In recent years, he has attempted to recast himself as a conventional political leader.
Syria formally joined the US-led global coalition against IS in November during al-Sharaa’s visit to Washington and has since coordinated operations targeting remaining IS cells. Syrian officials also attended a meeting of the 90-nation coalition in Riyadh earlier this week.
The statement praised IS activity in Africa and encouraged followers to relocate to regions where the group maintains a strong presence.
Renewed focus on Syria
Çağatay Cebe, an independent researcher on jihadist movements, said the message appeared to signal a renewed effort by IS to regroup inside Syria.
Following its territorial defeat in 2019, the group largely kept a low profile in Syria while strengthening overseas branches, Cebe said, carrying out attacks without claiming responsibility in many cases — particularly outside areas controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces.
He suggested the group’s posture shifted after al-Sharaa’s Washington visit, with IS beginning to openly claim attacks against government forces and redeploy fighters from desert hideouts into urban centres.
“IS is now preparing for a campaign centred on Syria again,” Cebe said, adding that the group could attempt to move fighters from Iraq into Syria despite limited short-term prospects for major gains.
Soon after the audio message was released, IS claimed responsibility for an attack in Raqqa that reportedly killed two alleged members of the Syrian army. The group also said it carried out an earlier assault in Deir al-Zor that left one interior ministry security member dead and another wounded.
A report published last week by the UN Office of Counter-Terrorism said IS had conducted five unsuccessful assassination attempts targeting al-Sharaa and two senior cabinet ministers.
IS once controlled vast areas of Syria and Iraq after its rapid expansion in 2014. Iraq declared the group territorially defeated in 2017, followed by its loss of remaining urban strongholds in Syria two years later.
In the latest statement, the IS spokesman also criticised Syria’s participation in the international coalition, claiming foreign powers were effectively directing the country’s leadership and calling for continued fighting in Damascus.
