Image Credentials: Image Title: The Kurdish-Led SDF Is Still Combating ISIS in Syria Every Day Source: (Craiyon) Date: September 2025. Attribution: Created using AI-generated imagery (Craiyon), this does not depict a real-world scene.
By Liam Scott | Staff Writer with Agencies
While global attention is focused on the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, the battle against the Islamic State group continues in Syria, where the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) remain on the front lines. Nearly six years after the collapse of ISIS’s territorial “caliphate,” sleeper cells and active remnants still carry out deadly attacks, underscoring that the extremist group remains a persistent threat.
Fresh Clashes in Deir ez-Zor
In just the past week, at least nine SDF fighters were killed in Syria’s eastern Deir ez-Zor province. On Saturday, four SDF members died in the town of Abriha during direct clashes that also left one ISIS militant dead. Two days earlier, five SDF fighters were killed and another was wounded in Al-Bahrah, prompting a security operation to track down ISIS cells in the area.
These incidents came just days after a U.S. raid eliminated Omar Abdul Qader, an ISIS operative accused of plotting attacks against the United States. That same day, ISIS militants killed one SDF member and wounded two others on patrol.
A History of Sacrifice
Since its founding in 2015, the SDF has been the primary ground force battling ISIS in Syria. With U.S.-led coalition support, the force captured Raqqa in 2017 and overran ISIS’s last holdout at Baghouz in 2019. The cost was steep: at least 11,000 SDF fighters lost their lives. Thousands of captured militants and their families remain in detention centers or camps such as the sprawling al-Hol.
The SDF warns that ISIS is regrouping. Since December, it says the group has carried out 153 attacks across northeastern Syria, while the SDF has mounted 70 counter-operations, arresting nearly 100 members, including three leaders. Thirty SDF fighters and six civilians have died in those efforts.
“ISIS remains an active and serious threat, both locally and internationally,” the group declared in a recent statement.
The al-Hol Challenge
The fate of tens of thousands of detainees in al-Hol and other camps looms large. At its peak in 2019, al-Hol held 73,000 people, including many ISIS family members. By March 2025, the population had dropped by more than half as repatriation programs accelerated.
At the United Nations General Assembly last week, Iraq hosted a high-level conference focused on al-Hol. President Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid emphasized Iraq’s role in repatriating more than 18,000 of its citizens from the camp, framing it as a model for others. U.S. Central Command chief Brad Cooper reinforced that repatriation is not only humane but also a “decisive blow” against ISIS recruitment.
Political Tensions in Syria
The SDF’s mission is complicated by fragile political dynamics. In March, SDF commander Mazloum Abdi signed an agreement with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa to integrate the SDF into Syria’s national forces. Months later, implementation has stalled. Deadly militia attacks and new clashes in September have strained relations, while Turkey continues to threaten military action if the SDF resists integration.
These tensions risk undermining security in northeast Syria. Analysts warn that dismantling or prematurely absorbing the SDF into untested Syrian forces could open space for ISIS to reemerge.
A Battle Far From Over
For now, the SDF remains the indispensable partner in holding back ISIS. Its continued sweeps, backed by U.S. airpower, have disrupted plots and contained militants. But with regional conflicts escalating and political compromises unresolved, the danger of an ISIS resurgence persists.
The extremist group thrives in chaos. Any renewed instability in Syria — whether from political infighting, militia attacks, or premature changes in security structures — could provide the opportunity ISIS has been waiting for.
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