Syria’s Interior Ministry announced that it had foiled what it described as a “sabotage” plot targeting the capital, Damascus, through a joint security operation between the Counterterrorism Directorate and the Internal Security Command in Rural Damascus.
In a statement published on its official accounts on Saturday, April 11, the ministry said the operation followed what it called “precise” security monitoring of suspicious movements inside the capital, without specifying the time frame of the operation.
According to the statement, specialized units tracked a woman whom the ministry said belonged to the cell while she was allegedly attempting to plant an explosive device outside the home of a religious figure near the Mariamite Church in the Bab Touma area of Damascus. Activists close to the government and media outlets quoted an official source as saying the target was rabbi Michael Houri in Damascus, though there has been no independent confirmation of that information so far.
The ministry added that security forces dismantled the explosive device before it detonated. It said the operation caused no injuries or material damage, and that five people, whom it described as all members of the cell, were arrested.
According to the statement, preliminary investigations showed links between the cell and Hezbollah. The ministry said the group’s members had received military training outside Syria, including training in planting explosive devices.
The statement gave no further details about the identities of those detained or the nature of the targeted religious figure. It also did not explain how they were connected to the group it named or how they moved to Syria.
The ministry said investigations were still underway to uncover the circumstances of the case and the parties connected to it, in preparation for referring the detainees to the competent judiciary. By the time this report was prepared, no independent information was available to confirm the details or circumstances of the operation.
Previous Security Operation
Syria’s Interior Ministry had previously announced that its security units, in cooperation with the General Intelligence Service in Rural Damascus, carried out what it described as a series of “precise” operations targeting a “terrorist” cell involved in several attacks on the Mazzeh district of Damascus and its military airport.
Those operations resulted in the complete dismantling of the cell and the arrest of all its members, according to an Interior Ministry statement published on Sunday, February 1.
Mazzeh has witnessed several security incidents in recent months, the latest of which was the fall of three rockets on January 3, which caused no injuries or casualties.
The ministry said preliminary investigations with those arrested showed links to external parties, and that the rockets, launch platforms used in the attacks, and the drones that were seized all belonged to Lebanon’s Hezbollah. It added that the suspects admitted they had been preparing new attacks using drones, but their arrest thwarted the plan before it could be carried out. All seized materials were confiscated, and the detainees were referred to the Counterterrorism Directorate to complete the necessary investigations.
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