Rebuilding Security in New Syria: Week 12

Tracking the spread of new security forces and security incidents in post-Assad Syria from February 24 to March 2

Announcements of security deployments mostly in western Syria, with an emphasis on the minority regions. Content is categorized as deployment, crime, statement, arrest, operation. 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 provided throughout.

• Damascus

• Coast

• Homs

• Hama

This week saw an escalation in ex-regime attacks against security forces, both in Damascus and in the coast. Among these attacks was the murder of two Ismaili men in the Qadmous countryside. Both men were well-known opposition supporters and had been serving in or supporting local security forces. A local Alawite sheikh helped security forces capture one of the Alawite attackers.

Meanwhile tensions spiked in the Jaramana neighborhood of Damascus. where ex-regime elements attacked a checkpoint outside of the neighborhood. This area is infamous for its regime-era militias, and these instigators should not be conflated with the broader Druze population. After a tense night of negotiations with pro-government Druze leaders from Suwayda, security was restored in the neighborhood. However, both the Qadmous and Jaramana attacks highlight the way ex-regime elements are able to attempt to stir sectarian fears in this tense period.