BAGHDAD, Feb. 23 (Xinhua) -- Head of Iraq's National Intelligence Service Hamid al-Shatri said on Sunday that Baghdad has sent messages to Damascus about the security threats posed by Islamic State (IS) gangs in some areas and prisons in Syria, the official Iraqi News Agency (INA) reported.

"Iraqi and Syrian arenas are closely interconnected, and what is happening in Syria directly affects Iraq, and vice versa, and Iraq has sent clear security messages to Syria about the threats posed by some extremist groups," INA quoted al-Shatri as saying during his participation in the 7th Baghdad International Dialogue Conference.

"Iraq attaches special importance to the issue of fighting the terrorist (IS) gangs, as there are still cells affiliated with these gangs in areas such as the desert of Homs and the Levant," he said, expressing concern about the weapons that were seized by some armed groups, including IS, following the fall of the former Bashar al-Assad government in Syria.

On Dec. 26, 2024, al-Shatri led the first official Iraqi delegation to Syria after the fall of al-Assad. During the visit, he discussed developments in Syria with interim Syrian leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa, focusing on the situation along the border between the two countries. Enditem

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