Since early February, the western countryside of #Syria's #Daraa has witnessed nearly 16 assassination attempts, in which 13 people were killed. #Russia #Iran https://t.co/a8I7wVyqKw
— NORTH PRESS AGENCY - ENGLISH (@NPA_English) February 20, 2022
During the past few days, Daraa, especially its western countryside, has witnessed a number of liquidations targeting activists opposed to the Syrian government, the last of whom was Wassim al-Hamad, head of the local council in the town of Mhajjah in the eastern countryside of Daraa.
Muhammad al-Shara’, a member of the Martyrs Documentation Office in Daraa, a local civil organization, said they documented 124 liquidations, during which 83 people were killed, 31 were maimed, and 10 people survived between the second settlement and the third settlement, i.e. from November 2021 to the end of January.
266 people with settlement cards were subjected to liquidation attempts, 183 of whom were killed and 72 maimed, while 10 others survived, since the start of the first settlement until now, he added.
Statistics obtained by North Press from the office indicate that liquidations have increased by more than 100 cases every year since 2019.
Al-Shara’ considered that the activity against the government was "unpublished, because arrest, disappearance or liquidation is often the fate of those who oppose the Assad regime, and this is what happened with a number of oppositionists, such as members of the Central Committee."
The office documented the killing of 18 members of the Central Committee after the first settlement in the summer of 2018, the last of whom was Mos’ab al-Bardan, who was assassinated on February 10, 2022.
In 2019, Daraa recorded 305 liquidations, to rise in 2020 to 411, while in 2021 it recorded 509 liquidations.
FREQUENT LIQUIDATIONS
On February 15, anonymous button men rubbed out a paramedic in Daraa. On the same day, residents of Daraa countryside found the body of a person bearing signs of gunfire.
In the same context, local people of al-Muzayrib town, in the western countryside of Daraa, found, February 14, body of a man identified as Bashar Ji’arah who was a former member of the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling
Allaharound with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not
reallyMoslems....
(ISIS) organization, according to local sources.
Hours before that, unknown button men assassinated the young man, Ahmad Abdel Ra’ouf al-Rashdan, on the road between Tafas and al-Muzayrib towns.
Researcher and journalist Hussam al-Barm attributes the increase in liquidations to the continuation of government security services in their violations against civilians and the issuance of lists repeatedly on behalf of their opponents in order to finish them to counter all forms of opposition.
Al-Barm referred to the failure of the three settlements, which was only a means to count those who oppose the Assad regime and the Russians.
With regard to liquidations in the government held areas, which witness a heavy security presence, such as the city of Daraa, the researcher added that this is normal as the regime tries to show itself as a target to gain more sympathy of the popular incubator.
In January, unidentified button men rubbed out Zakaria Abdulrahim al-Bardan, a former member of the opposition factions, in Tafas, in the western countryside of Daraa.
According to a local source, al-Bardan obtained a settlement card in 2018, after which he moved to civil works.
IRANIAN ROLE
Activists believe that Iran
...Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979...has a role in the liquidations that take place in Daraa, especially those targeting opposition members, to further consolidate its influence on the border province with Israel and Jordan.
A member of the Central Committee, who preferred not to be named, expressed his belief that the party behind the liquidations was some of "the regime’s apparatus linked to Iran and
Hezbollah."He pointed out that Iran had recruited agents from the people of Daraa to carry out liquidations against oppositionists of the government.
"Iran is also trying to have a foothold in the Syrian south, from the borders of Golan in the west to Suwayda governorate in the east, because it considers the south as a gateway to Jordan and the Gulf to facilitate drug access to them."
He believed that the security solution pursued by the government in Daraa will have counterproductive reasons, and stability will not be imposed as it continues to commit violations against civilians, whether oppositionists or others.
Since early February, the western countryside of Daraa has witnessed nearly 16 attacks and liquidation attempts, in which 13 people were killed.
In its annual report for the past year, the Martyrs Documentation Office in Daraa documented 317 liquidation operations and attempts in the western countryside of Daraa alone, representing 62.5% of the total documented operations and incidents.