Syrian regime forces besiege town south of Damascus after Fourth Division commander killed

Syrian regime forces surrounded the town of Zakiyah south of Damascus and imposed a siege following clashes with armed local people and the killing of a commander from the regime’s notorious Fourth Division.

The clashes began after regime forces detained two young men from the town, whose whereabouts are currently unknown.

Local sources said that regime forces had now imposed a "strict" siege and brought in reinforcements, including heavy weapons.

They added that there were now fears that regime forces could massacre civilians in the town, which has been the scene of tensions for a few months, after the regime confiscated the financial assets of hundreds of residents, using "anti-terror" laws as a pretext.

Mohammed Al-Saeed, a local media activist told The New Arab’s sister site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that the regime was demanding that those who killed the Fourth Division commander be handed over to its forces, threatening to storm the town if this was not done.

The Fourth Division has surrounded Zakiyah since September, placing checkpoints at the entrances to it. The division, commanded by President Bashar al-Assad’s brother Maher, is notorious for atrocities committed against civilians during the Syrian conflict.

It was expelled from Zakiya at the beginning of the year after its members killed a former rebel and it is believed to be currently preparing to bomb the town.

The Syrian Network for Human Rights has said that 817 residents of the town, including 273 women and 12 children, have had their assets seized by the regime since 2024.

It has accused the regime of using asset seizure as a form of collective punishment.

Zakiya was formerly controlled by the Syrian opposition but returned to regime control in 2017. Its inhabitants "regularised their status" with the regime, promising not to take part in political activity, but hundreds of them had their assets seized anyway.

The Syrian regime has often used collective punishment against rebellious towns and cities during the Syrian conflict which broke out in 2011, imposing sieges and starving civilians to death.

More than 500,000 people have been killed in Syria’s conflict, mostly as a result of regime bombardment of civilian areas.