“British intelligence services are developing plans to organize a series of terrorist attacks on Russian military facilities in Syria, with the role of perpetrators assigned to militants of the terrorist group ISIS,” the Russian intelligence service, better known as SVR, said in a statement published by the state-owned TASS news agency.
ISIS once controlled swathes of Syrian and Iraqi land, but was territorially defeated by 2019. The group continues to carry out deadly attacks, especially in areas where there is a security vacuum.
There are thousands of suspected ISIS fighters detained in northeast Syria by Kurdish forces who are partners with the US-led global coalition.
The SVR statement did not mention the US, but TASS reported that it was believed to be part of the plot.
The Russian intelligence service also claimed that the two Western powers plan to use ISIS members “who were recently released from prison by the ‘new authorities’” in the attacks, referring to the transitional government in Damascus that came to power on December 8 after toppling Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
Russia was a staunch supporter of Assad and provided military support to the regime in its years-long conflict with rebel and militia groups, including Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) which rules the new Syrian government.
One of the first things the rebels did after taking control of the country was release thousands of people who had been jailed in inhumane conditions and tortured by the fallen regime.