Syrian authorities warned on Monday against acts of revenge targeting individuals accused of ties to deposed leader Bashar al-Assad’s rule, after protests calling for accountability and apparent acts of vigilante justice.
Interior ministry spokesperson Noureddine al-Baba told a news conference that Syria’s new Islamist authorities were committed to bringing perpetrators of Assad-era crimes to justice.
But “the state categorically rejects turning the demand for accountability into an act of revenge”, he said, adding that justice must be pursued through the legal system.
He said the counter-terrorism department was holding some 6,000 Assad-era military and security personnel, including dozens of high-ranking officers.
Demonstrations have been held in recent days – including in the cities of Aleppo, Idlib, Deir Ezzor, Raqa and Hama – calling for accountability for so-called Assad “regime remnants” and “shabiha”, militiamen who helped crush dissent under the longtime ruler.
Osama Othman, 38, who participated in a demonstration on Monday in Al-Tal outside Damascus, said that “the state is late on accountability, so the people are holding (suspects) to account themselves”.
“There is no place for the shabiha or supporters of the old regime” in the new Syria, he told AFP.
Local residents said dozens of people took part in the protest.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor and local residents have reported tensions and protests in several areas in recent days, as well as attacks targeting individuals accused of links to Assad’s authorities.
Notices have circulated online and in some cities including Latakia, a heartland of the Alawite minority to whom the Assad family belongs, threatening alleged former “shabiha”.
Videos on social media have purportedly shown people accused of links to Assad’s rule being beaten in Aleppo province.
Assad was ousted in December 2024 after a civil war that killed more than half a million people.
Syria’s new authorities have repeatedly vowed to provide justice and accountability for Assad-era atrocities.
President Ahmed al-Sharaa also warned last week that “it is important not to use transitional justice as a pretext for revenge”.
(AFP)
