Is ISIS still active? US prevents Islamic State from filling Syria vacuum; Israel strikes Assad's chemical weapons

Immediately after the rebels led by Abu Mohammed al-Julani's Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) captured Damascus and expelled Bashar al-Assad, the global and regional powers have been scrambling to establish their foothold in the war-torn country.

The United States on Sunday bombed ISIS targets in Syria in a bid to stop the extremists from "trying to take advantage of any vacuum to re-establish" themselves. US President Joe Biden said they struck 75 IS targets, including operatives and their camps. The US has currently deployed 900 troops in southeast Syria. They used F-15s, A-10s and B-52s to carry out the strikes.

Though the Islamic State is still active, it's power and influence in Syria have been degraded significantly. ISIS lost most of its territories in 2019 and is currently contained to a small area with negligible forces but it continues its online propaganda efforts from its hideouts.

The Israeli Air Force on Sunday launched strikes on several targets in Syria to destroy the weapons of the Assad regime before they could fall into the hands of rebels or other extremist groups. The IAF destroyed chemical weapons, air defense systems, missiles and weapons production sites. These included the Khalkhala air base near Sweida, the Mezzeh air base in Damascus besides Daraa and Suwayda governorates.

IAF also hit the main customs headquarters, military intelligence offices, security complex and a government research facility in Kafr Sousa where Israel alleged that Iranian scientists were developing missiles. On the other hand, the Israel Defense Forces seized the buffer zone in the Golan Heights as part of a defensive strategy.

Turkey has targeted the Kurdish forces in northern Syria's Manbij. The Kurds led by YPG are backed by the US and they fought the Islamic State together. But Turkey views them as allies of the PKK, a group of Kurdish militants, within its territory. Turkey-backed rebels entered Manbij on Sunday, taking control of surrounding areas from Kurds.