Syria’s Interior Ministry announced on Thursday that security forces had arrested a suspected Islamic State (ISIS) cell in the northwestern Idlib province, accusing them of assassinating five Iraqi nationals.

The operation led to the "complete dismantling of the terrorist cell," with its members allegedly involved in carrying out the killings, according to Idlib security chief Ghassan Mohammed Bakir, as reported by the state-run SANA news agency.

During the raid, authorities seized a weapons depot containing explosive vests, bombs, sniper rifles, machine guns, and mortar shells. Bakir added that security forces also uncovered a workshop used for manufacturing and detonating explosives.

While ISIS attacks in Syria have primarily targeted Kurdish-held regions in the north and east, assaults in areas controlled by Damascus-affiliated forces remain uncommon. However, the group has continued to pose a threat through sporadic bombings and assassinations.

In June, a deadly bombing struck the Mar Elias Church in Damascus during Sunday mass, killing 25 people and wounding 63. Two assailants opened fire on worshippers before detonating an explosive vest. The Syrian government blamed ISIS for the attack.

ISIS, which declared a self-styled "caliphate" in 2014 after seizing large parts of Syria and Iraq, was territorially defeated in 2019 by Syrian and Kurdish forces backed by a U.S.-led coalition. However, the group remains active, carrying out guerrilla-style attacks, particularly against Kurdish-led forces.

On Wednesday, two fighters from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) were killed in an ISIS attack in eastern Deir ez-Zor province. Meanwhile, Kurdish-led forces, supported by the U.S.-led coalition, have stepped up counter-ISIS operations. In one such raid on Wednesday, a senior ISIS operative was captured in Hasaka city, northeast Syria (Rojava).