Security vacuum in regime-controlled areas | 18 murders leave 19 people dead since early 2023

Since the beginning of 2023, regime-held areas have experienced an alarming escalation of crime rates, in light of the failure of regime security services of the Syrian regime to put an end to the chaos and rampant security chaos that prevail across Syrian provinces which are under the control of regime forces.

 

The Syrian Observatory has documented 18 murders in regime-controlled areas since early 2023, where domestic violence and armed robbery were behind some of these murders, while motivations behind the others remained unknown. These murders left 19 civilians: five women and 14 young and adult men, dead. Here are further details on murders documented in regime-controlled areas since early 2023:

 

• January 1: Residents found the body of an 18 year-old young man killed in mysterious circumstances, and his body dumped in Sahl Madaya area in Al-Qalmon Al-Gharby in Rif Dimashq. However, the identity of the murderers were not been identified.

 

• January 2: Residents found the body of a woman killed in mysterious circumstances, with her body dumped in an Arabic well in the area between Shain town and Jab Al-Bostan village in Homs countryside, after she went missing nearly two months ago, while local authorities interfered to expose the details of the crime.

 

• January 3: A 23 years-old young man from Namra village in eastern Al-Suwaydaa countryside died affected by wounds sustained by a gunshot from an unidentified source, where he was taken to Al-Shahba hospital in Al-Suwaydaa countryside and died there.

 

• January 6: A young man was directly shot dead, due to disputes between him and another person in Al-Yadoda town in western Daraa countryside, escalating the situation to armed clashes and the house of the shooter was set on fire before he fled to an unknown destination, amid tension in the region.

 

• January 7: The headmaster of a school in Al-Qusour neighbourhood of Hama city died of injuries he sustained yesterday after being stabbed with a sharp tool by a student of the same school, a child under the age of 18. The school principal was stabbed with more than one stab wound to the abdomen and was taken to the hospital, then he died of his injuries.

 

• January 9: A young man was shot dead directly by a person during a fight with gunmen on a Toyota Hilux near Al-Bouarka bridge in Al-Suwaydaa city.

 

• January 12: A woman in her 60s was stabbed by a sharp object in her body by two girls inside her house in (Al-Qadam – Dahil) area in Damascus, after her money and jewelry were stolen. Meanwhile, local authorities arrested them.

 

• January 13: A man in his 30s was stabbed to death with a sharp object by his uncle inside his house in Al-Husseiniyah town in Rif Dimashq, due to disputes over a cellular phone, where local authorities arrested the uncle.

 

• January 14: A retired teacher from Khirbet Sa’ad village, east of Shaqa district, was shot dead by gunmen in his home in the north-eastern countryside of Al-Suwaidaa.

 

• January 15: A civilian was found dead and dumped near the regime checkpoint at the junction of the road between Basnada and Karsana in Al-Da’tour neighbourhood in Latakia.

 

• January 16: Unidentified young woman and young man were found slaughtered in a house in Ain Faterah neighbourhood in Qatna area in Rif Dimashq.

 

• January 17: The body of a man, who was shot dead in the head, was found dumped inside an abandoned room within a farm between Maarads and Kawkab towns in Hama countryside.

 

• January 19: A civilian was shot dead by unknown gunmen in Nawa city in the western countryside of Daraa.

 

• January 19: A university student died of the wounds she had sustained when a young man stabbed her with a sharp tool in the chest near Al-Seweed hospital in Al-Azhari roundabout in Latakia city.

 

• January 23: A young man was found dead and dumped in a well in Al-Masroub neighbourhood in Ma’raba town in Rif Dimashq, amid deployment of security services and police officers in the neighbourhood and attempts to extract the dead body.

 

• January 25: A person from Om Walad in eastern Daraa countryside was shot dead in the head by unidentified gunmen in the capital Damascus, for unknown reasons.

 

• January 25: The body of an unidentified elderly woman in her fifties was found dumped in the orchards of Al-Hanadi in Latakia countryside. The woman was killed by unknown persons for more than a week. The body was found with facial mutilation.

 

• January 26: A young man was shot dead by a person in Karam Samady neighbourhood in Jirmana city in Rif Dimashq, due to person disputes over money between them.

 

The fatalities are distributed regionally as follows:

 

• Al-Suwaydaa: Three murder crimes left three men dead.

 

• Rif Dimashq: Five murder crimes left a woman and five men dead.

 

• Homs: Two murder crimes left a woman and a young man dead

 

• Hama: Two murder crimes left two men dead.

 

• Daraa: One murder crime left a man dead.

 

• Damascus: Two murder crimes left a woman and a man dead.

 

• Latakia: Three murder crimes left a man and two women dead.