Nearly 300 arrested in Syria crackdown on Assad loyalists: monitor

A boy carries products for his family with the help of a bicycle in the cold weather after heavy rain, in Muadamiyat al-Sham, on the outskirts of Damascus, after Syria’s Bashar al-Assad was ousted, in Syria, December 29, 2024.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Syria’s new authorities have detained nearly 300 individuals, including informants, pro-regime fighters, and ex-soldiers, in a crackdown on loyalists to ousted former president Bashar al-Assad, a monitoring group reported on Sunday (December 29, 2024).

Following the overthrow of Assad by rebels led by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group three weeks ago, the new Syrian government has been actively working to solidify its control.

The security forces of the new regime launched a significant operation on Thursday (December 26, 2024) targeting Assad’s militias.

“In less than a week, nearly 300 individuals have been arrested in Damascus, Homs, Hama, Tartus, Latakia, and Deir Ezzor,” stated Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The official Syrian news agency SANA also reported arrests this week of “Assad militia members” in Hama and Latakia provinces, where weapons and ammunition were confiscated. However, specific figures were not provided.

“Among the detainees are former regime informants, pro-Iranian fighters, and lower-ranking military officers accused of atrocities such as killings and torture,” Abdel Rahman explained.

The Observatory, based in the UK, relies on a network of sources within Syria.

Abdel Rahman noted that “the campaign is ongoing, but no high-profile figures have been apprehended” except for General Mohammed Kanjo Hassan, the former head of military justice under Assad, who allegedly oversaw numerous death sentences following expedited trials at Saydnaya prison.

Referring to videos circulating on social media depicting armed individuals mistreating detainees and carrying out summary executions, Abdel Rahman stated, “Some individuals, including informants, were executed immediately upon arrest.”

AFP was unable to independently verify the authenticity of these images.

The arrests reportedly have the cooperation of local populations, Abdel Rahman added.

The HTS, alongside a coalition of former Islamist rebel groups, entered Damascus on December 8 after a swift offensive, prompting Assad to seek refuge in Russia.

Anas Khattab, the new head of General Intelligence, has vowed to reform the security apparatus, condemning “the injustices and oppressions of the former regime, whose agencies fostered corruption and inflicted hardships on the populace.”