US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Wednesday its forces assisted and enabled more than 22 operations against the Islamic State in Syria in which five members of the group were killed and 19 captured.

The operations took place from October 1 to November 6, CENTCOM said.

"We will continue to aggressively pursue ISIS remnants in Syria while working with the Global Coalition Against ISIS to ensure the gains made against the group in Iraq and Syria are lasting and ISIS is not able to regenerate or export terrorist attacks to other countries," CENTCOM head Admiral Brad Cooper said.

Syria recently signed a political cooperation declaration with the Global Coalition to Defeat Islamic State and has been carrying out nationwide pre-emptive operations against the group.

US to establish military presence in Damascus under Syria-Israel peace plan

The United States is preparing to establish a military presence at an airbase in Damascus to help enable a security pact that Washington is brokering between Syria and Israel, six sources familiar with the matter told Reuters last week.

US President Donald Trump meets Syrian counterpart Ahmed al-Sharaa in the White House, November 10, 2025.
US President Donald Trump meets Syrian counterpart Ahmed al-Sharaa in the White House, November 10, 2025. (credit: SYRIAN PRESIDENCY PRESS OFFICE)

The US plans for the presence in the Syrian capital, which have not previously been reported, would be a sign of Syria's strategic realignment with the US following the fall last year of longtime leader Bashar al-Assad, an ally of Iran.

Syrian Democratic Forces arrest five ISIS cell members in Raqqa raid

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) arrested five ISIS terrorists in a raid in Tal al-Saman, north of Raqqa, on November 1, the group's official media confirmed.

Three of the terrorists arrested were involved in "planning and carrying out terrorist attacks against SDF military points," as well as institutions belonging to the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES).

The Kurdish-led US-backed DAANES autonomously governs parts of northeastern Syria, and the SDF is its military wing, playing a key role in the US-led coalition against ISIS.

James Genn contributed to this report.