Fighters proclaiming allegiance to Islamic State seized most of a vast camp for Palestinian refugees on the outskirts of Damascus yesterday, a bid to capture the group's first major foothold close to President Bashar al-Assad's seat of power.
Islamic State fighters already control swathes of eastern Syria and northern Iraq and are facing an international campaign of air strikes led by the United States.
Until now they did not have a major presence in the area around the capital, where insurgents have mainly been loyal to other groups.
The Yarmouk refugee camp, home to half a million Palestinians before the conflict began in 2011, has been held by anti- Assad insurgents and besieged by government troops since the early days of the war. It is a few kilometres from the heart of Damascus, which is still firmly in government hands.
Seizing control
Mirroring the way Islamic State has grown elsewhere in Syria, its fighters seized control of areas of the camp from other insurgents, helped by rebels from the rival al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front who switched sides, a political activist in the area said.
“They pushed from the Hajar Aswad area and Nusra fighters have joined them, they have pledged loyalty to Daesh Islamic State],” the activist said, speaking via Skype.
Anwar Abdel Hadi, the Palestine Liberation Organisation representative in Damascus, said: “(Islamic State) went into Yarmouk today. There are clashes between the militants at the moment.”
The United Nations said it was extremely concerned about the safety and protection of Syrian and Palestinian civilians there. It estimates the population of Yarmouk at about 18,000, with most of its residents having long since fled.
Government officials could not be reached for comment.
Hassan Hassan, an analyst and author of a book about Islamic State, said the group had long wanted a foothold close to the capital but that it was unlikely to be able to storm the centre.
"The regime has established strong checkpoints and infrastructure to prevent forces from actually getting inside Damascus. But they are edging closer." Reuters