Syrian Security Agency Arrests Three Young Men on the Way Back from Idlib to Hama

A Syrian security agency arrested three young men from the city of Hama while heading back to the city after their “status was regularized” through the intermediary of a “reconciliation committee” and paying a sum of money to ensure that they are not arrested. The young men were based in Idlib province and decided to return to the city of Hama; they were arrested on November 23, 2018, and their fate is yet unknown, according to the testimonies obtained by Syrians for Truth and Justice/STJ.

STJ’s filed researcher in the city of Hama talked to a relative to one of the young men and a mutual friend of theirs. The two witnesses recounted the details of the incident. The young men Ramez Mohammad al-Shaar, 23-year-old from Tareeq Halap neighborhood, Mohammad Abdullah al-Wawi, 20-year-old from Wadi al-Hawarneh neighborhood and Samer al-Hussain, 21-year-old from al-Shaikh Anbar neighborhood, were arrested at the “Services” checkpoint, affiliated with the “Military Security Branch”, on the Salamiyah roadway on their way back from Idlib, as they took the Aleppo-Manbij-Hama road. The return followed their families’ communication with the “reconciliation committee” and intermediaries, in addition to paying money as to regularize the young men’s status and receive promises that they would not be subjected to detention.

Ahmad, the friend of detainee Ramez al-Shaar, said that Ramez left the city of Hama in 2016 and lived in the city of Maarrat al-Nu'man, Idlib, because he did not want to join the mandatory military service. However, when the living conditions deteriorated in Maarrat al-Nu'man, he decided to return to the city of Hama that is when he was arrested along with his two friends at the checkpoint, and news about him went lacking since then. “We did not expect him to be arrested, taking into consideration the promises the reconciliation committee made. At worst, we expect him to be transferred to the Military Police, but we have not received verified information so far. It is likely that he has been transferred to one of the capital Damascus’ security branches as is usually done.”

Concerning the other two detainees, Khlaid, a relative of theirs, narrated that Abdullah al-Wawi and his cousin, the son of his paternal aunt, Samer al-Hussain were also based in the city of Maarrat al-Nu'man and in the same house. They both left the city of Hama in 2015, and they worked in distributing commodities and food-based materials to shops by means of a car. Nonetheless, they wanted to return to the city of Hama because they lacked a sense of stability in Idlib and also for family-related reasons. He added:

 “When they decided to return, the same person who played the intermediary for their friend Ramez, as to return to the city, helped them. They were not wanted for anything but military service. We were supposed to obtain them volunteer identities as to perform the service within the city. Both their families paid a huge sum of money in return, so they would not be subjected to arrest. But the opposite thing happened, and certain people informed us that there are security reports against them, due to which they were arrested.”

The neighborhoods of the city of Hama are witnessing sporadic raids and arrest campaigns, ending with the arrest of young men and women on several accusations, under which STJ documented the arrest of a woman and her infant girl in December 2018 due to a malicious report. [1]