Rebuilding Security in New Syria: Year 2, Week 17
Tracking the spread of new security forces and security incidents in post-Assad Syria from March 30 to April 5
Announcements of security deployments mostly in western Syria, with an emphasis on the minority regions. This weekly update is intended to provide base level data for more holistic research into the rebuilding of the security and governance structures of post-Assad Syria. Direct links to primary sources are provided throughout.
Violence remained at a lower, though still consistent, level this week than the first two months of the year. For the fifth week in a row there was only one reported murder in Homs City, and violence in the Homs countryside also remained minimal. However, there has been growing anger by some Sunni residents in Talkalakh over alleged corruption and abuses by the security official in the area.
The most significant incidents this week came in Hama governorate, following the prior week’s events in Suqaylabiyah. Two Alawi men were murdered in Masyaf, a string of robberies were reported in al-Ghab, and Sunni ex-regime fighters attacked a local MoD member in northwest Hama, triggering a multi-day military operation in the town.
Meanwhile security operations continue across the country, still largely focused on regular crime. A large kidnapping ring was dismantled in Aleppo and three men responsible for killing a taxi driver outside Homs recently were arrested. At the same time, at least six ex-regime criminals were arrested in Homs and Hama.