Evening Brief: U.S. Transfers ISIS Detainees, SDF Integrates With Damascus, Floods Hit Idlib, Violence Spreads in Nigeria

There have been no reported clashes linked to the integration effort so far. Security coordination and counter-ISIS missions remain a shared priority during the transition.

While implementation is still early, the talks mark a significant shift in northeast Syria’s power balance. The outcome will determine whether this process produces a stable security framework or simply reshuffles forces under a new flag while deeper tensions remain unresolved.

Flash Floods Hit Idlib Displacement Camps, Kill Two Children

Jisr al-Shughur, Syria — Heavy winter rain tore through northwest Syria this weekend, flooding low-lying towns and overwhelming displacement camps across Idlib’s western countryside.

Around Khirbet al-Jawz, floodwater ripped through tent settlements overnight, forcing families to flee as seasonal waterways spilled into living areas. By early Saturday, streets were submerged, vehicles stranded, and shops packed with mud and debris as residents waded through chest-deep water trying to salvage what they could.

Local reports say evacuation teams moved families away from flood zones and cleared drainage channels as water levels continued to rise. Schools and mosques were opened as emergency shelters, housing more than 500 displaced families.

The flooding also forced the evacuation of Ain al-Bayda Hospital after water inundated parts of the facility, sending patients and staff to hospitals in Jisr al-Shughur and Idlib city.

Further west, the town of Darkush was hit after the Orontes River rose sharply, pushing floodwater into homes and commercial areas.

The storm turned deadly in northern Latakia countryside, where flash flooding killed two children and another was rescued after being swept from a tent. A Syrian Arab Red Crescent team responding to the floods was also involved in a traffic accident in the Jabal al-Turkmen area, killing one volunteer and injuring several others.

Aid groups warn that standing water and damaged sanitation systems raise the risk of disease as temperatures drop. For families already displaced by years of war, the floods follow a familiar pattern: tents pitched on bad ground, limited drainage, and winter systems that hit fast and hard.

Kaduna Violence Escalates as Gunmen Abduct Clergy in Parallel Raids

Kaduna State sits in northwest Nigeria, inland and north of Abuja, with long stretches of rough terrain where armed groups can move fast and disappear faster. That geography keeps paying dividends to the bad guys.

On Saturday, February 7, gunmen hit Karku community in Kauru Local Government Area. They stormed Holy Trinity Catholic Church around 3:20 a.m. and abducted the parish priest, Rev. Fr. Nathaniel Asuwaye, along with at least ten other residents. Three locals were killed in the attack: Jacob Dan’azumi, Maitala Kaura, and Alhaji Kusari.

Parallel raids hit Kagarko Local Government Area, where attackers seized Chief Imam Bello Abdullahi and Fulani community leader Shehu Bello during assaults on Janjala and nearby settlements. The attacks unfolded within the same operational window, reinforcing the sense of coordination rather than isolated criminal acts.

Security forces responded and made contact with the attackers during pursuit, but outcomes remain unclear and official casualty figures have not been confirmed.

This is the operating pattern in Nigeria’s northwest. Rapid raids. Civilian targets. Kidnapping built around clergy and community leaders who carry leverage. The playbook hasn’t changed: overwhelm, grab bodies, fade into terrain the state does not consistently control.

Call them bandits, call them terrorists, the result is the same. Churches and mosques remain predictable targets.