The Japan Times - 'Protect our people': Armed Syrian volunteers watch over Damascus

After Islamist-led rebels ousted former president Bashar al-Assad in early December, thousands of soldiers, policemen and other security officials deserted their posts, leaving the door open to petty theft, looting and other crimes.

The new Syrian authorities now face the mammoth challenge of rebuilding state institutions shaped by the Assad family's five-decade rule, including the army and security apparatuses that have all but collapsed.

In the meantime, Damascenes have jumped into action.

In the Old City, Fadi Raslan, 42, was among dozens of people cautiously watching the streets, his finger on the trigger of his gun.

"We have women and elderly people at home. We are trying to protect our people with this volunteer-based initiative," he told AFP.

"Syria needs us right now, we must stand together."

- 'Protect our neighbourhoods' -

Local committees have taken over some of the deserted checkpoints, with the authorities' approval.

Hussam Yahya, 49, and his friends have been taking turns guarding their neighbourhood, Shughur, inspecting vehicles.

"We came out to protect our neighbourhoods, shops and public property as volunteers, without any compensation," he said.

He said the new authorities, led by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group, have backed their initiative, providing light arms and training.

Authorities also provided them with special "local committee" cards, valid for a year.

Police chief Ahmad Lattouf said the committees had been set up to patrol neighbourhoods to prevent crime until the police could take over.

"There aren't enough police officers at the moment, but training is ongoing to increase our numbers," he said.

The Damascus committees begin their neighbourhood watches at 22:00 (19:00 GMT) every night and end them at 06:00 (03:00 GMT) the next morning.

Further north, in the cities of Aleppo and Homs, ordinary residents have also taken up weapons to guard their districts with support from authorities, residents told AFP.

The official page of the Damascus countryside area has published photos on Telegram showing young men it said were "volunteering" to protect their town and villages "under the supervision of the Military Operations Department and in coordination with General Security".

It also said others were volunteering as traffic police.

- 'Rebuild our country' -

A handful of police officers affiliated with the Salvation Government of the Idlib region, the rebel bastion controlled by HTS before Assad's fall, have also been deployed in Damascus.

Traffic policemen have been called from Idlib to help, while HTS gunmen are everywhere in the capital, especially in front of government buildings including the presidential palace and police headquarters.

The authorities have also begun allowing Syrians to apply to the police academy to fill its depleted ranks.

Syria's new rulers have called on conscripts and soldiers to surrender their weapons at dedicated centres.

Since rising to power, HTS and its allies have launched security sweeps in major cities including Homs and Aleppo with the stated goal of rooting out "remnants of Assad's militias".

In the capital's busy Bab Touma neighbourhood, four local watchmen were checking people's IDs and inspecting cars entering the district.

Fuad Farha said he founded the local committee that he now heads after offering his help to "establish security" alongside the HTS-affiliated security forces.

"We underwent a quick training, mainly teaching us how to assemble weapons and take them apart and to use rifles," he said.

Residents told AFP that the committees had been effective against burglars and thieves.

"We all need to bear responsibility for our neighbourhood, our streets and our country," Farha said.

"Only this way will we be able to rebuild our country."

K.Inoue--JT