Assad loyalists have expressed discontent at the looting of government buildings in the Assad neighborhood of Aleppo by regime forces after they seized control of the district on Saturday.

Pro-regime pages on Tuesday, November 15, have circulated news about Assad’s forces and allied militias preventing civilians from entering the suburb until the looting of the houses was completed, in addition to stealing furniture and electrical supplies from the postal building.

The chairman of the board at the Federation of Syrian Chambers of Industry, and a member of parliament, Faris Shahabi, said on his Facebook page: “At least they left the people the doors to their homes. I swear if the traitor thief al-Hayani was alive (the previous commander of the Badr Martyrs Brigade) he would have been put to shame by your looting of the Assad district in this record time.”

Shahabi added: “Chanting his name and looting his district — is this how you show love for your leader? Shame on you. Aleppo will not tolerate you and God will not tolerate you.”

For his part, the governor of Aleppo, Hussein Diyab, said: “An iron hand will strike, in addition to draconian measure, against the looters and those who might be tempted to encroach on the property of citizens.”

Diyab said that he was forming patrols with security agencies and military and civilian police and Baath brigades in order to protect the city from those who were looting citizens’ property.

He said that recently a number of people had been arrested including members of the pro-regime militias under the charge of stealing and that they had been transferred to the courts.

The acts of systematic looting of property in the opposition areas by the regime’s shabeeha militias are no longer an issue which is hidden from Syrians, as looting has become the primary source for all the markets, and at cheap prices. Stories have frequently circulated about people who have found the looted goods from their homes in these markets and have purchased them back.

This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.