Regime-controlled areas in May 2022 | Over 145 fatalities in acts of violence amid rampant security chaos…ongoing arrests despite Al-Assad’s pardon…worsening living crises
SOHR renews its appeal to the international community to intensify its efforts to end the Syrian people’s suffering
Regime-controlled areas experienced scores of dramatic developments in May 2022, including an alarming escalation of violence, worsening living conditions, tightening security grip and ongoing arbitrary arrests.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) has monitored and tracked all key developments in regime-controlled areas in the past month, which can be summarised in the following main points:
Acts of violence leave many casualties
In May 2022, regime-controlled areas saw an alarming escalation of acts of violence that left many casualties, where SOHR documented the death of 146 people across areas controlled by the Syrian regime and affiliated militias; they are as follows:
Civilian fatalities
54 civilians, including eight children and four women. Here are further details of the circumstances of these deaths:
-13 civilians, including a child and a woman, were murdered in 12 separate incidents. These murders are distributed regionally as follows:
- Damascus: A man.
- Rif Dimashq: A man and a child.
- Al-Suwaidaa: An elderly woman and five young and adult men.
- Al-Raqqah: Two men.
- Daraa: Two men.
-15 civilians were killed in assassinations and security chaos incidents in Daraa province.
-Eight civilians, including a girl, were killed over personal conflicts among young men and others between tribesmen and factions backed by regime’s “Military Intelligence Branch” on one hand, and local factions on the other.
-A child was killed in clashes among Iranian-backed groups in Al-Sayyida Zaynab, south of Damascus.
-A child was killed in shelling by opposition factions on Nebl and Al-Zahraa in the countryside of Aleppo.
-Four civilians were killed following the collapse of the roof of a building bombarded previously by Russia and regime aircraft in Jobar district in Damascus.
-The head of “Customer Service and Air Cargo Department” and ground treatment director was killed by the Israeli bombardment that targeted Damascus international airport.
-Ten civilians, including five children and two women, were killed in explosions of old landmines in Homs, Daraa, Rif Dimashq, Al-Raqqah and Hama.
-A civilian died under torture in regime prison.
Non-civilian fatalities
92 military personnel, collaborators with regime security services, drug dealers and non-civilians, and they are as follows:
-24 military personnel, members with settled-status and collaborators with regime security services were killed in incidents of security chaos in Daraa province.
-Four drug dealers were killed in security chaos incidents in Daraa.
-Two militiamen of the Russian-backed 5th Corp were killed in incidents of security chaos in Daraa.
-An unidentified gunman was killed in security chaos incidents in Daraa.
– A regime army defector was shot dead in a security chaos incident in Daraa.
-Ten regime-backed militiamen from Nebl and Al-Zahraa were killed on frontline, west of Aleppo.
-Six Iranian-backed militiamen were killed in internal clashes in Al- Sayeda Zeinab, south of Damascus.
-Two regime combat engineers were killed in Al-Quneitra.
-A regime volunteer soldier was assassinated in Al-Suwaidaa.
-Two regime soldiers were killed by Turkish shelling on the north-western countryside of Aleppo.
-A regime officer was assassinated in Al-Zafaranah town in northern Homs countryside.
-An regime officer was killed by rockets fired by factions on regime positions in Kafr Nebl city in southern Idlib countryside.
-Two militiamen of the regime-backed Al-Baath Battalion were killed by IED explosions in western Ghouta, Rif Dimashq.
-Four drug traffickers were killed after being ambushed by the Jordanian Armed Forces, while thwarting the smugglers’ attempt to bring a shipment of drugs into Jordan from Al-Suwaidaa desert.
-A National Defence Forces member was found dead in Hatlah town, north of Deir Ezzor.
-Ten ISIS fighters were killed by Russian aerial bombardment on various positions in the Syrian desert.
-Eight regime soldiers and affiliated militiamen were killed in five offensives waged by ISIS cells in the Syrian desert.
-Ten air-defence officers and regime soldiers were killed by Israeli bombardment in the vicinity of the capital, Damascus, and Masyaf area in Hama countryside.
-A regime soldier was killed by an explosion of old ordnance in Al-Zamiliyah town in southern Masyaf countryside in Hama.
-A regime army defector from Deir Ezzor died under torture in the regime’s prison.
Despite Al-Assad’s general amnesty, tens of thousands of innocents remain imprisoned in regime prisons
Following the presidential pardon issued by president Bashar Al-Assad in late April, regime security services released nearly 1,168 detainees and prisoners in several batches. The recently-released detainees included persons who had been arrested a few months earlier in criminal cases and others involved in “terror-related” crimes. However, the number of released prisoners declined dramatically since mid-May, despite promises made by regime to release thousands of detainees. These unfulfilled promises caused great disappointment among families of prisoners and victims forcibly disappeared in regime’s prisons.
Meanwhile, a mass demonstration was staged by residents in Kanakir town in western Rif Dimashq, where people called for the release of detainees held in regime prisons.
Ironically, Syrian regime’s security services continued to arrest more civilians arbitrary in regime-held areas across Syria.
In May, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) documented the arrest of 38 persons from the provinces of Homs, Al-Suwaidaa, Damascus and Deir Ezzor by regime’s security services.
Furthermore, people accused Iranian-backed militias of kidnapping four civilians from Palmyra in Homs countryside.
In addition, SOHR documented the kidnapping of an engineer in Al-Suwaidaa province in southern Syria.
Here are further details of arrests and kidnaps:
Arrests
- First incident: A civilian was arrested by members of a regime security patrol, after the Syrian Red Crescent had taken the man out from Al-Rukban camp for treatment.
- Second incident: Regime militiamen arrested 20 civilians and Bedouin tribesmen from Daraa, near Atil town, north of Al-Suwaidaa. Later, the prisoners were released.
- Third incident: Regime security services arrested an elderly man from Al-Mayadeen in Deir Ezzor countryside, after he headed to Damascus for treatment.
- Fourth incident: Regime soldiers stationed at a checkpoint at the entrance to Ankhel city in western Daraa countryside.
- Fifth incident: Members of a joint patrol of intelligence branch and Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) stormed houses in western district of Palmyra in the eastern countryside of Homs, arresting four persons for “cooperating with ISIS and giving information concerning the positions of Iranian-backed militias in Palmyra city.”
- Sixth incident: Regime Intelligence Branch patrols arrested 11 farmers from Al-Bala’um and Al-Taybah areas in Al-Mayadeen city in eastern Deir Ezzor countryside for “not selling a share of wheat crop to the regime and selling it on duty-free market.”
Kidnaps
- Four civilians disappeared while working in Palmyra city and countryside. While the victims’ relatives accused Iranian-backed militias of kidnapping them.
- Unidentified gunmen stormed a post office in Atil town in northern Al-Suwaidaa countryside, kidnapping an engineer.
Abandoned newborn babies cases surge to alarming levels in light of dire living conditions
As abandoned newborn babies cases have dramatically escalated and continued in an upward trend in all Syrian provinces across Syria, and turned into a rampant phenomenon in regime-held areas, SOHR activists documented five cases of abandoned newborn babies in May in areas controlled by regime in Aleppo, Homs, Rif Dimashq and Daraa.
Also in May, four power stations went out of service, leading to a reduction in electricity production from 1,900 to 1,500 megawatts.
According to SOHR sources, Banyas 1 and Banyas 2 stations in the coastal province of Tartous, Al-Zarah and Mahrada in Hama province, went out of service due to lack of fuel.
Furthermore, regime-held areas witnessed dire living crises manifested in sky-high foodstuff and fuel prices, as well as ongoing transportation crisis.
Israel continues to violate Syria’s sovereignty
In May, SOHR activists documented three attacks carried out by Israel in Syrian territory, targeting Iranian-backed militias positions and arms and ammunitions depots and regime air-defence systems in Al-Quneitra, the surrounding areas of the capital Damascus and Hama countryside.
The Israeli bombardment left ten air-defence officers and regime soldiers and a civil servant at Damascus international airport dead.
Full details on May’s Israeli attacks in Syria can be summarised as follows:
-May 11: Israeli missiles showered positions in the vicinity of Hadar town in northern Al-Quneitra countryside, near the border with the occupied Syrian Golan, where these areas host positions of Iranian and Hezbollah-backed militias, mainly the “Syrian Resistance for the Liberation of the Golan.”
-May 13: Six officers and non-commissioned officers, five of whom were officers of air-defence forces, were killed by direct Israeli attack on an air-defence vehicle, while they were trying to intercept the Israeli rockets fired on Wadi Al-Oyun road, west of Masyaf and Al-Suwaidah area south-east of Masyaf in Hama countryside. The Israeli bombardment also left more than ten other military personnel and civilians, including a little girl, injured.
-May 20, Israeli missiles hit military positions of Iranian-backed militias in the vicinity of Jabal Al-Mani’, near Al-Kiswah city in south-western Rif Dimashq, and in Jamraya area, north of the capital Damascus, and the surrounding areas of Damascus international airport. In addition, shrapnel of Israeli missiles hit a farm in Sayeda Zeinab area controlled by Iranian-backed militias, south of Damascus. The Israeli bombardment left five people dead; they are as follows:
- Three air-defence officers.
- A regime soldier.
- The head of “Customer Service and Air Cargo Department” and ground treatment director.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) has been all along warning against the repercussions of the crippling chronic crises and security chaos in regime-controlled areas and elsewhere in Syria, with only the Syrian regime to blame for the disastrous situation Syria is in right now. We, at the Syrian Observatory, call upon all international actors not to abandon their responsibility and obligations towards the people of Syria and urge them to find a lasting solution to the tragedy of millions of Syrians and bring Al-Assad, his affiliates and all those responsible for violations and those who aided and abetted the killing of Syrian people to justice.
