BAGHOUZ, Syria: A US-backed force in Syria is closing in on Daesh militants in a tiny area less than a square kilometer (square mile) in eastern Syria, and will soon declare the defeat of the militant group, a commander with the group said Saturday.
The capture of the last pocket still held by Daesh fighters in the village of Baghouz would mark the end of a devastating four-year global campaign to end the extremist group’s hold on territory in Syria and Iraq — their so-called “caliphate” that at the height of the group’s power in 2014 controlled nearly a third of both Iraq and Syria.
“We will very soon bring good news to the whole world,” said Ciya Furat, a commander with the Kurdish-led force known as the Syrian Democratic Forces, speaking at a news conference at the Al-Omar Oil Field Base in the Deir Ezzor province.
President Donald Trump said the White House will make an announcement about Syria and the fight against Daesh by the end of Saturday.
“We have a lot of great announcements having to do with Syria and our success with the eradication of the caliphate and that will be announced over the next 24 hours,” Trump told journalists at the White House on Friday.
An Associated Press team in Baghouz Saturday, hundreds of meters away from the last speck of land where Daesh militants were holed up, saw several aircraft overhead and two airstrikes hit the area. SDF fighters said were fired by the US-led coalition.
The Syrian Democratic Forces declared the final push to capture the village a week ago after more than 20,000 civilians, many of them the wives and families of foreign fighters, were evacuated.
Since then, SDF commanders say they have been surprised to discover that there were hundreds more civilians in the enclave, after they were brought up by the militants from underground tunnels. Their presence has slowed down the SDF advance.
Furat, the SDF commander, said Daesh fighters are now besieged in an area that is about 700 square meters (840 square yards). He said that SDF fighters were able to liberate 10 of their colleagues that were held by Daesh.
Furat’s comments were carried by Kurdish news agencies, including Hawar News.
“We are dealing with this small pocket with patience and caution. It is militarily fallen but civilians are used as human shields,” SDF spokesman Mustafa Bali told The Associated Press. Bali added that the SDF believes that Daesh gunmen are also holding previously kidnapped Syrians in the area.
Rami Abdurrahman, who heads the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, said SDF fighters are almost in full control of the area once controlled by extremists, adding that there might still be Daesh fighters hiding in a network of underground tunnels.
The Observatory said that some 200 Daesh gunmen surrendered Friday, days after about 240 others surrendered and were taken by SDF fighters and members of the US-led coalition.
“The defeat of Daesh will come within days,” Furat said. He added that after the physical defeat of Daesh, the SDF “will continue in its fight against Daesh sleepers cells.”
Despite the expected defeat on the ground, activists and residents say Daesh still has sleeper cells in Syria and Iraq and is laying the groundwork for an insurgency. The group has claimed responsibility in recent months for deadly attacks, mostly in Iraq, more than a year after the Iraqi government said the extremists have been defeated after losing the northern city of Mosul in 2017, the largest they held.
![]()
US-backed fighters closing in on Daesh gunmen in eastern Syria
US-backed fighters closing in on Daesh gunmen in eastern Syria
- President Donald Trump said the White House will make an announcement about Syria on Saturday
- Groups said that some 200 Daesh gunmen surrendered Friday
Hamas seeks role for its police in Gaza
- Letter from Hamas assures its 40,000 civil servants and security forces that it is working to incorporate them into the new government
CAIRO: Hamas is seeking to incorporate its 10,000 police officers into a new US-backed Palestinian administration for Gaza, sources say, a demand likely to be opposed by Israel as the militant group debates whether to surrender its arms.
Islamist group Hamas retains control of just under half of Gaza following an October ceasefire deal brokered by US President Donald Trump.
The agreement ties further Israeli troop withdrawals to Hamas giving up its weapons.
The 20-point plan to end the war, now in its second phase, calls for the governance of Gaza to be handed to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, a Palestinian technocratic body with US oversight that is meant to exclude Hamas.
In a letter to staff on Sunday, seen by Reuters, Gaza’s Hamas-run government urged its more than 40,000 civil servants and security personnel to cooperate with the NCAG but assured them it was working to incorporate them into the new government.
That would include the roughly 10,000-strong Hamas-run police force, four sources familiar with the matter said, a demand that has not been previously reported. Many of them have been patrolling Gaza as Hamas reasserts its grip in areas under its control.
It was not immediately clear whether Israel, which has adamantly rejected any Hamas involvement in Gaza’s future, would agree to the civil and security workers’ inclusion in the NCAG.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
Sticking points
Hamas’ plans for its police force and workers point to wide gaps between Hamas and Israel, backed by the US, as Trump pushes ahead with his plans. Last week, Trump hosted a signing ceremony to establish his “Board of Peace” that will serve as a transitional administration to set the framework and coordinate funding for the redevelopment of Gaza. The framework includes a provision barring “foreign terrorist organizations” from participating in governance.
Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem told Reuters the group was prepared to hand over governance to the 15-member NCAG and its chair, Ali Shaath, with immediate effect.
“We (have) full confidence that it will operate on the basis of benefiting from qualified personnel and not wasting the rights of anyone who worked during the previous period,” Qassem said, referring to the inclusion of the 40,000 personnel.
The four sources said Hamas is open to the NCAG restructuring ministries and sending some workers into retirement. Mass dismissals risked chaos, the sources said.
Hamas and NCAG Chair Shaath have not yet met in person to discuss governance, a Hamas official said. Shaath’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
Another issue was whether Sami Nasman, the former Palestinian Authority general assigned to oversee security under the NCAG, would be able to operate effectively, a Palestinian official said.
Nasman, originally from Gaza, moved to the occupied West Bank after Hamas routed Palestinian Authority forces from the enclave in 2007 following a brief civil war. A Hamas court in Gaza later sentenced him in absentia, accusing him of instigating chaos. Nasman denies this.
Neutralizing arms
Trump’s administration wants to see heavy weapons decommissioned immediately, with “personal arms registered and decommissioned by sector as (the) NCAG police become capable of guaranteeing personal security,” according to a document shared by the White House last week. A US official said on Tuesday that Hamas fighters would be granted some sort of amnesty.
The militant group is still believed to possess rockets, which several diplomats estimated to number in the hundreds. It is also estimated to possess thousands of light weapons, including rifles.
Hamas recently agreed to discuss disarmament with other Palestinian factions and with mediators, sources said. However, two Hamas officials told Reuters that neither Washington nor the mediators had presented the group with any detailed or concrete disarmament proposal.
A Palestinian official close to the disarmament talks said the US had approached Hamas to explore potential disarmament mechanisms involving parties including Israel, Qatar, Egypt and Turkiye.
“Hamas has spoken about the possibility of neutralising arms, which could be achieved if there is a truce, and it is ready for a long-term ceasefire — five years or a little longer,” the official said.
“But Hamas strongly believes that a serious political negotiation process must begin on Palestinian statehood, whereby weapons and fighters would come under the authority of the State of Palestine,” the official said.
Hamas is not the only militant group in the enclave to possess arms. A source in a Gaza faction allied with Hamas said other groups were discussing disarmament but worried about being left defenseless.
In remarks to parliament on Monday, Netanyahu said that the next phase of the Gaza deal “is not reconstruction.”
Rather, he said, “the next phase is demilitarization of the Strip and disarming Hamas.”
Islamist group Hamas retains control of just under half of Gaza following an October ceasefire deal brokered by US President Donald Trump.
The agreement ties further Israeli troop withdrawals to Hamas giving up its weapons.
The 20-point plan to end the war, now in its second phase, calls for the governance of Gaza to be handed to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, a Palestinian technocratic body with US oversight that is meant to exclude Hamas.
In a letter to staff on Sunday, seen by Reuters, Gaza’s Hamas-run government urged its more than 40,000 civil servants and security personnel to cooperate with the NCAG but assured them it was working to incorporate them into the new government.
That would include the roughly 10,000-strong Hamas-run police force, four sources familiar with the matter said, a demand that has not been previously reported. Many of them have been patrolling Gaza as Hamas reasserts its grip in areas under its control.
It was not immediately clear whether Israel, which has adamantly rejected any Hamas involvement in Gaza’s future, would agree to the civil and security workers’ inclusion in the NCAG.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
Sticking points
Hamas’ plans for its police force and workers point to wide gaps between Hamas and Israel, backed by the US, as Trump pushes ahead with his plans. Last week, Trump hosted a signing ceremony to establish his “Board of Peace” that will serve as a transitional administration to set the framework and coordinate funding for the redevelopment of Gaza. The framework includes a provision barring “foreign terrorist organizations” from participating in governance.
Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem told Reuters the group was prepared to hand over governance to the 15-member NCAG and its chair, Ali Shaath, with immediate effect.
“We (have) full confidence that it will operate on the basis of benefiting from qualified personnel and not wasting the rights of anyone who worked during the previous period,” Qassem said, referring to the inclusion of the 40,000 personnel.
The four sources said Hamas is open to the NCAG restructuring ministries and sending some workers into retirement. Mass dismissals risked chaos, the sources said.
Hamas and NCAG Chair Shaath have not yet met in person to discuss governance, a Hamas official said. Shaath’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
Another issue was whether Sami Nasman, the former Palestinian Authority general assigned to oversee security under the NCAG, would be able to operate effectively, a Palestinian official said.
Nasman, originally from Gaza, moved to the occupied West Bank after Hamas routed Palestinian Authority forces from the enclave in 2007 following a brief civil war. A Hamas court in Gaza later sentenced him in absentia, accusing him of instigating chaos. Nasman denies this.
Neutralizing arms
Trump’s administration wants to see heavy weapons decommissioned immediately, with “personal arms registered and decommissioned by sector as (the) NCAG police become capable of guaranteeing personal security,” according to a document shared by the White House last week. A US official said on Tuesday that Hamas fighters would be granted some sort of amnesty.
The militant group is still believed to possess rockets, which several diplomats estimated to number in the hundreds. It is also estimated to possess thousands of light weapons, including rifles.
Hamas recently agreed to discuss disarmament with other Palestinian factions and with mediators, sources said. However, two Hamas officials told Reuters that neither Washington nor the mediators had presented the group with any detailed or concrete disarmament proposal.
A Palestinian official close to the disarmament talks said the US had approached Hamas to explore potential disarmament mechanisms involving parties including Israel, Qatar, Egypt and Turkiye.
“Hamas has spoken about the possibility of neutralising arms, which could be achieved if there is a truce, and it is ready for a long-term ceasefire — five years or a little longer,” the official said.
“But Hamas strongly believes that a serious political negotiation process must begin on Palestinian statehood, whereby weapons and fighters would come under the authority of the State of Palestine,” the official said.
Hamas is not the only militant group in the enclave to possess arms. A source in a Gaza faction allied with Hamas said other groups were discussing disarmament but worried about being left defenseless.
In remarks to parliament on Monday, Netanyahu said that the next phase of the Gaza deal “is not reconstruction.”
Rather, he said, “the next phase is demilitarization of the Strip and disarming Hamas.”
Latest updates
© 2026 SAUDI RESEARCH & PUBLISHING COMPANY, All Rights Reserved And subject to Terms of Use Agreement.