Syria's Assad 'legalizes' private security firms

Share:

assad scaredSyria’s president has passed a decree legalizing private security firms, faced with a 29-month armed revolt against his rule that has pinned down the police, state news agency SANA reported Tuesday.

President Bashar al-Assad’s decree regulates “licencing for private companies that provide protection and guard duties … to ensure the safety of individuals, establishments, property and the transport of cash, jewels and precious metals,” said SANA.

One-year renewable licences are to be issued by the interior ministry, it said, but only to Syrian nationals with capital of more than $250,000.

“The interior minister will define the categories of arms to be used by each company, ranging from revolvers to rifles and others,” said the agency.

The decree also stipulates that each company will be licenced to recruit between 300 and 800 guards.

A security source told AFP that guards will have to wear a uniform, while the decree will allow security companies to open offices and issue employees with hand arms.

“Security guards will be in charge of protecting prominent personalities and businesses, while securing the transport of money,” the source told AFP on condition of anonymity.

Before Syria’s conflict broke out in mid-March 2011, “these tasks were mainly assigned to the police. But because of the situation, now the police has other tasks,” he added.

Alongside the anti-Assad uprising, Syria has been plagued by a spike in crime, kidnappings and robberies.

FOX/AFP

Share:

Comments

14 responses to “Syria's Assad 'legalizes' private security firms”

  1. JS_Bach Avatar

    So that’s basically privatizing the Shabbeeha organization to make it even more in the shadows, bury it a few more layers down and make its operations more hidden and less traceable if at all. But above all, to try and square the blame on these “private security firms” when international justice arrives.

  2. JS_Bach Avatar

    So that’s basically privatizing the Shabbeeha organization to make it even more in the shadows, bury it a few more layers down and make its operations more hidden and less traceable if at all. But above all, to try and square the blame on these “private security firms” when international justice arrives.

  3. Even though I have serious issues with this guy I believe he’s a lot smarter than I originally had thought he was. Buy issuing these Licenses he’s basically buying loyalty of the people (in desperate need of money) that were undecided as to which side they prefer to back in this uprising. Each company licensed is now able to hire upto 800 guards and arm them which in effect means that these guards will be an extended part of Assads military/ police force ultimately under his control.

    1. 5thDrawer Avatar
      5thDrawer

      No-one said he wasn’t devious …. but all ‘plans’ have to work for him.
      How broke companies can hire 800 ‘building-guards’ might be just too tricky.

      1. 5th, I agree they’ll find it hard to employ 800 but if they can pay only a hand full of thugs to vandalize, steel and harass enough shop owners these owners will be more than willing to hire guards to patrol their stores. I work in the hotel industry and one day a security company came looking for work. We said that we don’t really have the need to hire security as our hotel was in a quite safe neighborhood, that same week we had three rooms broken into and our guests belongings were taken, it never happened before mind you. Well my boss quickly rang up the security and employed them. Supply and demand !

        1. 5thDrawer Avatar
          5thDrawer

          Well, that’s definitely the old Mafia ‘Protection Racket’ trick for sure – no matter which Mafia and country they are in. 🙂
          Of course, what you need then is a police-force, you can trust, to rat them out to. :-)))

  4. Even though I have serious issues with this guy I believe he’s a lot smarter than I originally had thought he was. Buy issuing these Licenses he’s basically buying loyalty of the people (in desperate need of money) that were undecided as to which side they prefer to back in this uprising. Each company licensed is now able to hire upto 800 guards and arm them which in effect means that these guards will be an extended part of Assads military/ police force ultimately under his control.

    1. 5thDrawer Avatar
      5thDrawer

      No-one said he wasn’t devious …. but all ‘plans’ have to work for him.
      How broke companies can hire 800 ‘building-guards’ might be just too tricky.

      1. 5th, I agree they’ll find it hard to employ 800 but if they can pay only a hand full of thugs to vandalize, steel and harass enough shop owners these owners will be more than willing to hire guards to patrol their stores. I work in the hotel industry and one day a security company came looking for work. We said that we don’t really have the need to hire security as our hotel was in a quite safe neighborhood, that same week we had three rooms broken into and our guests belongings were taken, it never happened before mind you. Well my boss quickly rang up the security and employed them. Supply and demand !

        1. 5thDrawer Avatar
          5thDrawer

          Well, that’s definitely the old Mafia ‘Protection Racket’ trick for sure – no matter which Mafia and country they are in. 🙂
          Of course, what you need then is a police-force, you can trust, to rat them out to. :-)))

  5. wargame1 Avatar

    The occupation force did the same in Iraq and in Afghanistan through the ” Black Water” security constructors

    1. 5thDrawer Avatar
      5thDrawer

      Contractors. And yes … extra eyes watching the backs. At least one of them did his job – then almost got killed by ‘the street mob’ because he was obviously a white man. :-)))))

  6. wargame1 Avatar

    The occupation force did the same in Iraq and in Afghanistan through the ” Black Water” security constructors

    1. 5thDrawer Avatar
      5thDrawer

      Contractors. And yes … extra eyes watching the backs.

Leave a Reply