UN Report: 5 Attempts to Assassinate Ahmed al-Sharaa in One Year

SadaNews - A UN report revealed that Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, along with the ministers of interior and foreign affairs, were targets of five assassination attempts, all of which occurred last year.

The relevant report was issued yesterday, Wednesday, by the Office of the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, addressing the threats posed by ISIS militants during the year 2025.

The report did not specify exact dates or details of these attempts, except to indicate that they took place in Aleppo in the north and Dara'a in the south, clarifying that they primarily targeted al-Sharaa, as well as Interior Minister Anas Khattab and Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani.

Regarding the group responsible for these attempts, the report stated that it was a group known as "Sarayat Ansar al-Sunnah," adding that it is "merely a front for the organization, providing it with a plausible deniability of responsibility and greater operational flexibility."

However, the report viewed these assassination attempts as additional evidence that the "extremist organization" remains determined to undermine the new Syrian government and "actively exploits security vacuums and uncertainty" in Syria.

It is noted that al-Sharaa's government announced in November of last year its joining of the international coalition formed to confront the organization that had previously controlled a significant part of Syria.

UN counter-terrorism experts stated that the organization continues to operate across the country, primarily targeting security forces, especially in the north and northeast.

The Associated Press reported that the organization remains a threat despite losing geographical control, citing UN experts estimating that there are about 3,000 fighters active between Iraq and Syria, with the majority concentrated in Syria, particularly in northern and northeastern areas.

The UN report cited an ambush against American and Syrian forces near the city of Palmyra on December 13 of last year, which resulted in the deaths of two American soldiers and a civilian, prompting the administration of then-President Donald Trump to launch retaliatory military operations to pursue the remnants of the organization.

Since late last month, American forces have begun transferring detainees accused of belonging to the organization from Syria to Iraq, justifying this as a measure to secure their detention and ensure their prosecution, after Syrian government forces took control of camps previously managed by the "Syrian Democratic Forces" (SDF) following the most recent ceasefire agreement between the two sides.

Before this agreement, more than 25,750 people remained in the al-Hol and al-Roj camps in the northeast, with over 60% being children, in addition to thousands more in other detention centers.

On January 29, 2025, al-Sharaa was chosen to assume the presidency of Syria during the transitional phase in a meeting of the new Syrian administration, abolishing the constitution and dissolving the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party, the People's Assembly, and the army and security apparatuses of Bashar al-Assad's regime.

Al-Sharaa led the "Deterring Aggression" campaign, which began on November 27, 2024, and succeeded in toppling Bashar al-Assad's regime within 12 days, culminating in the entry into the capital Damascus, while Assad fled to Russia after 24 years in power, which was preceded by another 29 years under his father, Hafez al-Assad.