The Governor of As-Suwayda, Mustafa Bakour, announced that the judicial police in As-Suwayda have begun operations after accepting those who applied to join the Ministry of Interior from the people of As-Suwayda, in implementation of the statement issued by local leaders following recent tensions in the province.
Bakour explained in an interview with the state-run Al-Ikhbariya channel, that the number of individuals who have joined the Ministry of Interior from As-Suwayda reached 2,214, including 100 officers in the province.
The province also tasked the police leadership with overseeing their distribution according to the regulations in place within the Ministry of Interior.
For his part, the Commander of Police Units in As-Suwayda, Nizar al-Hariri, mentioned that the police leadership has activated five police units, which are the Criminal Security Branch, the Traffic Department’s city section, the external section, and the Public Order Battalion. He noted that these units have begun operations, having discovered some crimes and organized police reports.
Additionally, the police leadership in As-Suwayda has activated the Shahba section, which oversees three districts, and the Salkhad section, which supervises four districts.
The aim of activating these sections is to empower the police force in the province to ensure citizens’ rights and reduce and uncover crime, according to al-Hariri.
Previous demands for security activation
On May 1, a statement was issued by representatives of the Druze community in As-Suwayda, southern Syria, calling for the activation of security in the province and urging the state to protect the road connecting to the capital, Damascus.
The statement, of which Enab Baladi obtained a copy, called for the activation of the role of the Ministry of Interior and the judicial police in As-Suwayda from the local population.
It also called for securing the As-Suwayda-Damascus road, holding the government responsible for it, and urged the establishment of security and safety across Syrian territories.
The statement emphasized the desire for “a country that includes all Syrians, free from sedition, sectarian strife, personal grudges, and the ignorance of tribalism,” as it described.
The attendees rejected calls for division and secession from Syria, affirming “stable national positions.”
The statement followed a meeting that included representatives of the Druze community in As-Suwayda, led by the spiritual leader of the sect, Hikmat al-Hijri, and the two Sheikhs of Mind, Youssef al-Jarbou’ and Hamoud al-Hanawi, along with leaders of local factions, most notably Yahya al-Hajjar and Laith al-Balous.
However, according to Enab Baladi’s information, al-Hijri, who attended the meeting, did not confirm his approval of the outcomes.
The statement coincided with movements of convoys belonging to the General Security of the Ministry of Interior, suggesting that steps outlined in the statement are being implemented.
The statement came after tensions in cities and towns with a majority Druze population, starting in the city of Jaramana in the Damascus countryside, and spreading to the town of Ashrafiyat Sahnaya, reaching the village of Kanaker and various villages and towns in As-Suwayda.