The Syrian Interior Ministry reveals the identity and motives of the Palmyra attack perpetrator

Syrian security sources announced that the perpetrator of the attack that targeted a joint military delegation in central Syria on Saturday was a security member affiliated with the Ministry of Interior and was scheduled to be excluded, in an incident that re-shed light on the security challenges facing the new authority.

A security source told Agence France-Presse, “The perpetrator of the attack had been a member of Public Security for more than ten months, and had worked with the agency in more than one city before he was transferred to Palmyra.”

He added that the authorities “arrested more than 11 members of Public Security and referred them to investigation immediately after the incident,” as part of expanding investigations to determine the circumstances and whether there was any negligence or internal coordination.

The US Central Command in the Middle East, Centcom, announced that the attacker was killed and three other soldiers were wounded, noting that the delegation was in Palmyra as part of a support mission for the ongoing operations against ISIS.

A source in the Syrian Ministry of Defense told Agence France-Presse on Sunday that the American forces “came by land from the direction of the Al-Tanf military base.”

He added, “The joint Syrian-American delegation toured the city of Palmyra first, then headed to the T4 military airport before returning to a security headquarters in Palmyra again,” where the attack occurred.

The spokesman for the Syrian Ministry of Interior, Nour al-Din al-Baba, indicated that “a security assessment issued against the perpetrator on the tenth of this month indicated that he may carry takfiri or extremist ideas,” explaining that a decision was supposed to be issued against him on Sunday.

The Pope said in a statement to state television that “the Internal Security Command in the Badia region includes more than five thousand members, and is subject to a weekly evaluation mechanism on the basis of which organizational and security measures are taken when needed,” stressing that the outlet “does not occupy any leadership position” in the agency.

The attack resulted in the death of three Americans, including two soldiers and a civilian working as a translator, in addition to wounding members of the American and Syrian forces, according to Washington and Damascus.

Another security source said, “The American forces are currently deployed only at the Mezzeh Military Airport in government-controlled areas,” and the rest of the areas they were found in were “for the purpose of visiting only.”