The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights

As a part of the regime’s efforts to dissolve the ally forces of its army…Latakia province witnesses internal fighting between groups of Shabiha whose leaders are related to the families of Bashar Al-Assad and the military intelligence

After the battle fronts between the regime forces and gunmen loyal to them calmed down, the internal fronts did not take long to ignite, where the battles erupted due to the expansion of the force of the Shabiha and the increase of its influence, where the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitored the continued state of tension in Latakia city and its countryside, and Qardaha city which is the hometown of Bashar Al-Assad, and resentment prevailed among citizens against the security events in which one of their two parties is the Shabiha groups which have large influence, the province witnessed during the recent week, clashes which took place between the forces of military intelligence against Shabiha groups led by one of the assistants of Sulayman Al-Assad, where the clashes took place at the entrance of Latakia city, against this group which is close to Ayman Al-Jaber the leader of the Sea Falcons forces which were minimized previously by the presidency of the Syrian regime, because one of Al-Jaber’s brothers abused the escort of a senior commander in the Syrian regime in February 2017, which forced the regime forces to minimize these forces and take back tens of their members, despite their participation with the Desert Falcons in the battles of Al-Raqqah, the Syrian Desert, Latakia and Aleppo, but they -the Sea and Desert Falcons- were disclosed due to the mass thefts and looting they carried out within Aleppo city.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitored the death of Sulayman Al-Assad’s assistant in the ambush prepared by the regime forces, the SOHR also monitored that the regime forces arrested Jaafar Shalish who is a relative of the Syrian regime President Bashar al-Assad, and he is one of the leaders of the Shabiha groups in the ally forces of the regime forces, as a result of accusations of weapons and drug trafficking, and the sources confirmed that during the raid on the wanted, 2 members of the regime’s intelligence were killed, also the state of tension against Jaafar Shalish the leader of the Shabiha group, who was arrested, have stepped up as a result of Shalish’s weapons and drug trafficking.

The first wanted person, Mohannad Hatem, who worked as Sulayman Al-Assad’s assistant, is close to Ayman Al-Jaber the commander of Sea Falcons, who recruited citizens, with his brother Mohamed Al-Jaber, in their ranks through paying salaries for their fighters, of the money they used to get from the supporting parties, where the Syrian Observatory published of the 21st of 2017, that Ibrahim Jaber-brother Captain Commando, sea and desert falcons, in Lattakia, a lengthy exchange leading procession in the Syrian regime, and did not know whether Bashar Assad or his brother, guiding Curses and insults to a Colonel, was in charge of convoy escort and secure, reliable sources for the Observatory, Ibrahim Jaber who was travelling in luxury cars with him, his resentment and anger of the procession passed close to the route of Jaber, Ibrahim Jaber but face ‘ ordered ‘ to other procession to stop and make way for the motorcade, cursing and swearing to the Colonel in charge of the companion of the other convoy.

This abuse of the procession stepped up tension and created a system command has seethed with resentment. Bashar Al-Assad which took place between the guerrilla leader brother procession and hawks, where he received the Syrian Observatory for human rights information from reliable sources, which confirmed that the Syrian regime and direct orders from Bashar Al-Assad had to pull more than 900 member of the security forces and were soldiers performing compulsory military service, and performing their service within the ranks of the commando sea, while the system forces retained the elements within the ranks of the volunteer militia, sources confirmed to the Observatory. It’s about being driven to resolve sea commando although these militias with Russia was training and desert hawks supported by Russian troops, and had a big role in the battles of Palmyra Latakia countryside and Aleppo city, and this incident came after arresting Ibrahim al-Jaber and his companion, and his car was seized as a result of what has happened between Al-Jaber and the escort in the coastal city of Latakia.

This internal fighting in the ranks of the regime forces and their intelligence against the ally forces and groups in Latakia, Qardaha and other Syrian areas and cities, is coincided with a decision of the Syrian regime leadership which it seeks to issue about dissolving the ally forces either through joining them to the regime forces or completely dissolving them and demobilizing the volunteers who participated in all battles with the regime forces on the Syrian territory, where the SOHR published on the 1st of June 2018, that it obtained information about an unprecedented decision which the regime will apply in the Syrian territory, and the details obtained by the Observatory from reliable sources: it is expected that regime’s authorities in the coming period will completely resolve the forces loyal to them, which have participated along regime’s army forces as ally forces, the sources added that this direction –of which a decision is being prepared after a Russian request– came during the visit of the Syrian regime President Bashar al-Assad to Russia and his meeting with the Russian President Vladimir Putin, and the sources confirmed to the Syrian Observatory that the Russian request included not only the dissolution of pro-regime militia who are supported by the regime, but also including the resolve of the Iranian-backed militia who are funded by the Iranian side operating on the Syrian soil, this decision have spread a wide resentment among members these pro-regime forces, who participated alongside the regime forces in all the battles that took place on the Syrian territory, objecting this decision of which the regime force seek to issue, where the sources confirmed that it will include either the option of permanently demobilizing members of the allied forces, or formally enrolling them in the ranks of regime’s Army.

This Russian request and the consultations of regime’s authorities regarding issuing the decision in a future period; came after series of violations in the past months and years by the regime forces, and after the increase of frequency of these violations in areas controlled by the regime forces and the militiamen loyal to them, where these loyal forces have carried out looting operations for thousands of houses and robbed tens of thousands of citizens of their personal belongings and money, whether on the checkpoints or in villages, towns and cities from Aleppo city until the Western Ghouta, the Eastern Ghouta, Homs city and countryside, Aleppo countryside, and the countryside of Homs, Hama, south Damascus, Rif Dimashq, south Rif Dimashq, Deir Ezzor, al-Raqqah and other areas in Syria, and what provoked the regime and the Russians even more is the deliberate flee of some of the non-opposition people from regime’s conscription service toward areas controlled by these militias who are loyal to the regime forces, also the resentment increased among regime’s authorities due to this phenomenon which continued in the past years, especially after the killing, defection and injury of tens of thousands of members of the regime forces in the clash against the rebel and Islamic factions, the “Islamic State” organization and Hayyaat Tahrir al-Sham “Jabhat al-Nusra”, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights documented the death of about 50000 members of regime’s loyal Syrian fighters, who fight in the clashes and confrontations alongside the regime, in addition to the injury of tens of thousands more and the flee of thousands others.