Former troopers abandon their weapons for papers

On the night time of December 6, Mohammed el-Nadaf, a soldier within the Syrian military, was at his publish in Homs.

As rebels led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) marched into the town, days after taking management of Aleppo and Hama in a lightning offensive, Mohammed determined he didn’t need to struggle .

“We had obtained no orders, no info. I took off my uniform, left my weapons and began heading in direction of my village of Tartous,” he stated.

Across the similar time, Mohammed Ramadan was on the outskirts of the capital, Damascus.

“There was nobody to offer us orders. A lot of our commanders fled earlier than us. So I assumed: why ought to I die and struggle for somebody who did not even give me a wage sufficient to feed my household?

“For our each day rations as troopers, we solely obtained one egg and one potato.”

The subsequent morning, he additionally left his publish and returned dwelling.

The troopers’ testimonies present perception into the speedy collapse of deposed President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

For a lot of of his demoralized and poorly paid forces on the bottom, the rapidity with which their protection disintegrated within the face of the insurgent offensive got here as no shock.

Many troopers advised us they have been paid lower than $35 (£28) a month and needed to do different work to outlive in a rustic the place this may solely cowl a fraction of the price of dwelling for base.

Mohammed Ramadan was holding the Kalashnikov rifle assigned to him once we met him and several other others in Damascus, greater than two weeks after the autumn of the regime, in a “reconciliation heart” run by HTS.

On the heart, former navy, police and intelligence brokers, in addition to anybody who was a part of pro-Assad militias, can register for a short lived civilian id card and lay down their weapons.

HTS introduced a normal amnesty for many who labored for the previous regime.

Waleed Abdrabuh, a member of the group that runs reconciliation facilities in Damascus, stated: “The purpose is for weapons issued by the previous regime to be returned to the state. And that members of the forces get hold of a civil id card. in order that they are often reintegrated into society.

Beneath Assad, conscription into the military was obligatory for grownup males. Conscripts have been required to give up their civilian ID playing cards and obtained navy ID playing cards as an alternative.

And not using a civil ID card, it will be tough to discover a job or transfer freely across the nation, which partly explains why tens of 1000’s of individuals confirmed up within the facilities of various cities.

In central Damascus, the previous workplace of Assad’s Baath Get together, a whole lot of males crowded towards the gate, desirous to be admitted.

A lot of them needed to distance themselves from the crimes of the regime.

“I didn’t take part in any of their dangerous actions. I contemplate them despicable acts. I did all the things to keep away from collaborating within the massacres and crimes in opposition to Syrians,” Mohammed al-Nadaf stated.

“I even tried to go away the military twice as a result of I knew I used to be on the incorrect facet. However there was no escaping. The military had all my civilian paperwork.”

Somar al-Hamwi, who served within the military for twenty-four years, stated: “Most individuals do not know something, okay? For me, I do not know what occurred in Saydnaya or within the prisons.

The BBC can’t independently confirm their claims.

Anger on the regime and Assad’s choice to flee to Russia on December 7 as rebels approached Damascus was additionally palpable.

“He [Bashar al-Assad] took some huge cash and ran away. He left all these folks, all of us troopers, left to our personal future,” Somar stated.

There have been many anxious faces among the many crowd on the reconciliation heart, however the atmosphere appeared comparatively pleasant regardless of 13 years of civil conflict that has left greater than half one million useless.

“Everybody advised me it was protected and to maneuver to the middle. The safety assurance supplied by HTS made an enormous distinction,” stated Mohammed al-Nadaf.

However in several components of Syria, there are reviews of suspected revenge assaults involving killings, kidnappings and arson. There aren’t any dependable statistics confirming the variety of assaults which have taken place, however dozens have been reported on social media.

Final week, three judges who have been adjudicating property-related instances within the beforehand regime-controlled city of Masyaf in northwest Syria – Mounzer Hassan, Mohammed Mahmoud and Youssef Ghanoum – have been killed. Sources on the hospital the place their our bodies have been examined advised the BBC that they had been hit on the pinnacle with a pointy object.

We went to Alamerea village to go to Mounzer Hassan’s home. It was naked, chilly and seemed prefer it was in want of restore.

Mounzer’s spouse, Nadine Abdullah, advised us she believed her husband was focused as a result of he was Alawite – the minority sect from which the Assad household hails and to which many members of the Assad household belonged. political and navy elite of the previous regime.

“As they have been civil judges and never legal judges, I feel they have been killed just because they have been Alawites. Not all Alawites benefited from Bashar al-Assad. Those that labored for the regime have been pressured to observe orders, in any other case brutal measures would have been taken that have been imposed on them,” Nadine stated.

Mounzer’s brother Nazir stated: “It is a crime in opposition to an harmless individual. It’s unacceptable. Those that have been killed had no reference to the regime’s insurance policies. They have been merely working to supply for his or her wants. their poor households.”

Mounzer was the daddy of 4 younger youngsters and was the only real wage earner in his household, additionally caring for his ailing father and brother.

Her household stated they have been talking out as a result of they needed such deaths to be averted sooner or later.

“Everybody says HTS did not commit the crime. However as a authorities authority, they’ve to seek out out who did it. They’ve to make sure safety for all of us,” Nadine stated.

The HTS interim authorities condemned the assassination of the judges and stated it will discover the culprits. He additionally denied any involvement in reprisal killings.

Protests occurred in Masyaf following the assassination of the judges, and lots of Alawites advised the BBC they now anxious for his or her security.

Whereas HTS introduced an amnesty for Assad’s forces, additionally they stated these concerned in torture and killings can be held accountable. It will likely be a tough steadiness to seek out.

Just a few weeks after the autumn of the regime, it’s a delicate second for Syria.

Further reporting by Aamir Peerzada and Sanjay Ganguly.