Why did Washington warn about ISIS in As-Suwayda?

The Lebanese newspaper An-Nahar stated that the recent U.S. warning concerning the situation in As-Suwayda, issued directly by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, signifies a notable shift in Washington’s stance on the Syrian scene particularly following the meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ahmad Al-Shara in May.

In a tweet posted by Rubio on the platform “X,” he wrote:
"If the authorities in Damascus want to preserve any chance of achieving a unified, peaceful Syria free from ISIS and Iranian control, they must deploy their security forces to prevent ISIS and violent jihadists from entering As-Suwayda and committing massacres."

The newspaper noted that this statement reflects American apprehension about the ongoing chaos in As-Suwayda, especially in light of what it called a “tribal mobilization,” which could provide extremist groups with an opportunity to resume activity under the cover of disorder or sectarian tension.

In a recently documented incident, an ISIS militant released a video showing the burning of a large building on agricultural land in rural As-Suwayda, accompanied by the phrase: “Lone wolves roam, wreak havoc, capture, and burn.”

An-Nahar observed that some crimes committed in As-Suwayda in recent days bear clear ISIS signatures, such as public executions, pointing out that these methods were only seen during ISIS’s peak control from 2013 to 2018.

During that period, ISIS militants forged strong ties with several tribes in eastern Syria, with some tribes forming part of their military strength.

Following the Battle of Al-Baghuz, many militants withdrew; however, An-Nahar suggests that this withdrawal may have been tactical rather than ideological, motivated by survival rather than abandonment of their ideology.

An-Nahar highlighted a statement issued by ISIS-affiliated “Saraya Ansar al-Sunnah” on July 15 one day before the start of the “tribal mobilization” in which they declared: “We will repeat what we did previously in killing and brutalizing the Druze community in As-Suwayda.” Despite this explicit threat, the Ministry of Interior of the Syrian interim government took no preventive measures and continued to treat “Ansar al-Sunnah” as a “fictional” entity.

The report concluded by indicating that Washington considers the lack of an effective security response by the interim authorities a dangerous gateway for ISIS’s return. This situation jeopardizes the credibility of the interim government both domestically and internationally, raising serious questions about its ability to maintain security and prevent escalation into severe sectarian conflicts.

ANHA