Kurdish-Led Forces Targeted in Motorcycle Attack in Northeast Syria
Two members of the Kurdish-led Internal Security Forces (Asayish) and a civilian were injured in a motorcycle attack in Syria’s Raqqa province, the Asayish announced in a statement on Monday.
The assault occurred in the evening in al-Mansoura city, located in the eastern part of al-Tabqa district. According to the statement, two assailants on a motorcycle opened fire with Kalashnikov rifles, targeting security forces.
"The cowardly attack injured two of our members and a civilian who was present at the scene," the Asayish said, without identifying the perpetrators.
Al-Tabqa, roughly 40 kilometers southeast of Raqqa city, is under the control of the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES).
The incident follows a series of assaults on Kurdish-led forces in the region. Earlier in July, the Asayish reported that five of its members were killed and two others wounded in an attack blamed on "terrorist groups."
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) attributed the earlier attack to an Islamic State (ISIS) cell. According to SOHR, at least 126 ISIS operations have been recorded in 2025 in areas controlled by the AANES, including armed assaults, assassinations, and bombings. These attacks have resulted in 51 deaths, including 34 fighters from the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), nine civilians, and eight ISIS members.
The SDF, which played a key role in defeating ISIS territorially in 2019, continues to work alongside US-led coalition forces to combat the group’s remnants. Kurdish authorities also oversee detention camps like Roj and al-Hol, housing thousands of suspected ISIS affiliates.
Despite its territorial defeat, ISIS has intensified attacks in recent months. Analysts suggest the group is exploiting instability following the December 2024 ousting of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad by opposition factions, including the now-dissolved Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).
