DAMASCUS: The new head of Syria’s intelligence services announced on Saturday a plan to dissolve the institutions that were so feared under the rule of ousted dictator Bashar Assad.
“The security establishment will be reformed after dissolving all services and restructuring them in a way that honors our people,” Anas Khattab said, two days after being appointed to his post by the country’s new leadership that overthrew Assad in early December.
In a statement carried by the official Sana news agency, he stressed the suffering of Syrians “under the oppression and tyranny of the old regime, through its various security apparatuses that sowed corruption and inflicted torture on the people.”
Prisons were emptied after Assad’s fall as officials and agents of the deposed regime fled.
Most of these installations are now guarded by fighters of Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), the Islamist group that led the armed coalition that seized power in Damascus.
Numerous Syrians have rushed to former detention centers in the hope of finding traces of relatives and friends who went missing during the 13 years of a devastating civil war that left more than a half million dead.
“The security services of the old regime were many and varied, with different names and affiliations, but all had in common that they had been imposed on the oppressed people for more than five decades,” Khattab continued.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), more than 100,000 people died in Syrian prisons and detention centers during the conflict.
On Thursday, a general who ran military justice under the former regime was arrested in the west of country, accused of being responsible for sentencing to death thousands of people held in the notorious Saydnaya prison.
And in Europe, several former senior Syrian intelligence officers accused of torture and other abuses have been convicted and jailed since 2022.
Syria’s new intel chief vows reforms to end abuses
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Syria’s new intel chief vows reforms to end abuses
- Most of these installations are now guarded by fighters of Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), the Islamist group that led the armed coalition that seized power in Damascus
Safety of Jordanians a priority during regional conflict, says country’s crown prince
- He visits Civil Defense Department and is briefed on the work it is doing to manage emergencies and protect lives and property amid attacks by Iran
LONDON: The safety of citizens is a priority for authorities in Jordan amid regional tensions, the country’s Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah Al-Hashimi said on Wednesday as he visited the Civil Defense Department for a briefing and iftar event.
He stressed the importance of keeping pace with the latest developments in civil protection systems and taking every opportunity to enhance the skills of Civil Defense personnel, the royal court said.
The department, which operates under the Ministry of Interior, has been working to manage emergencies and protect lives and property amid a barrage of missiles and drones launched by Tehran in recent days in response to attacks on Iran by the US and Israel. The strikes have targeted civilian and military areas in Jordan and other countries in the region.
During his visit the crown prince was greeted by Maj. Gen. Obeidallah Maaytah, director of the Public Security Directorate, and Brig. Gen. Nasser Sweilmeen, the Civil Defense director, and briefed on the work of the Civil Defense Department, the systems it uses, and the ways in which it is responding to the regional conflict.
In addition to firing missiles into Israel, Iran has targeted US forces at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan and other American military sites in Gulf countries. Military personnel and civilians in several countries have been killed or injured by missiles or falling debris.
