Enab Baladi – Muwafaq al-Khouja

The Israeli strikes that occurred last week in al-Qusayr brought attention to the city located south of Homs, which is under the influence of the Lebanese Hezbollah.

The latest strike occurred on Tuesday, November 5, following one on October 31.

Targeting Hezbollah

Israel stated that the strikes targeted weapon depots used by Hezbollah, while Syrian state media or those close to the regime claimed the strikes hit civilian targets.

According to information obtained by Enab Baladi from a resident of the area, al-Qusayr was subjected to more than three major airstrikes in the attack that occurred on October 31.

One of these strikes cut off the road connecting the city to the center of Homs province.

As for the second strike, it closed the road leading to the Jousieh border crossing with Lebanon.

The third strike hit the only fuel station that residents rely on for their fuel supplies, according to information obtained by Enab Baladi.

Some residents attempted to flee after the first strike, which targeted residential buildings and the industrial area in al-Qusayr, but the roads cut due to the airstrikes prevented that.

The residents of al-Qusayr live in a state of instability and fear of further attacks due to the presence of Hezbollah elements in the city.

Hezbollah did not comment on the strikes.

Within the range of Israeli aircraft

The Israeli targeting was not the first on the city of al-Qusayr and its surrounding areas, as the city has witnessed several strikes, most of which targeted Hezbollah’s interests.

Israel has intensified its strikes against Iranian targets or militias supported by Tehran in Syria, especially Hezbollah, following the Al-Aqsa Flood operation on October 7 of last year.

Al-Qusayr is located in the western countryside of Homs in central Syria.

It is connected to more than 80 villages, is a multi-confessional city, hosting Shia, Alawite, and Christian populations, though Sunni Muslims are the majority.

The city is connected to Lebanon from the Bekaa region via the Jousieh border crossing, which was closed after opposition factions seized it in 2012, and was later reopened by the regime in December 2017.

The crossing was targeted by an Israeli strike on November 2, rendering it out of service.

What is the relation of Hezbollah to al-Qusayr?

Hezbollah’s military influence extends from the villages bordering the Lebanese-Syrian border in the Bekaa region to within al-Qusayr, which the regime took control of with significant support from the Lebanese party.

The city was one of the first areas to witness foreign fighters publicly battling alongside regime forces against opposition fighters, marking Hezbollah’s initial foothold in Syria.

It became a launchpad for Hezbollah’s operations within Syria after June 2013 and remains under the Lebanese party’s influence, with its security checkpoints spread alongside those of the regime.

Hezbollah has long bragged about its military achievement in al-Qusayr against opposition factions. The party’s former secretary-general, Hassan Nasrallah, previously characterized events in the city of Homs province as a “battle for the party.”

On another occasion, Nasrallah sent a message to his elements in al-Qusayr praising their fighting efforts, adding that “everyone” (referring to his supporters) understands “the importance of the battle and is ready to sacrifice.”

After the regime and Hezbollah took control of al-Qusayr in June 2013, the city experienced the displacement of most of its residents, who fled to northern Syria, Arsal in Lebanon, and central Homs city.

At that time, the city underwent near-total destruction in its northern and western parts, previously controlled by opposition factions, while the eastern section that remained under regime control suffered less damage.

Four years after its takeover, Hezbollah held a military parade in al-Qusayr on November 13, 2016, showcasing tanks and armored vehicles.

Hezbollah’s military parade in al-Qusayr in the Homs countryside – November 13, 2016 (Facebook)

The city continues to suffer from infrastructure destruction resulting from the military campaign the regime launched before regaining control.

Rehabilitation of the infrastructure is proceeding at a slow pace, while residents struggle to restore their properties due to the destruction of buildings.

With security approval

According to official Syrian statistics from 2011, the population of the city and its affiliated villages was approximately 112,000.

There are no recent statistics regarding the current number of residents in the city.

The regime promoted the return of displaced residents to the city in 2019, but the published figures did not reflect the reality on the ground, as most of its people remain displaced both inside Syria and abroad.

Also, the former leader of Hezbollah, Nasrallah, called on the residents of al-Qusayr in Lebanon to return to their city on September 20, 2019, mentioning the coordination of the Lebanese security forces with the Syrian regime for the return of the displaced “under the applicable controls and mechanisms.”

Since 2019, the regime has started issuing lists of those “wishing” to return to their city, and the number of returnees, according to these lists, reached about 5,000 by the end of 2020.

Under a similar policy applied in the regions that returned to its control, the Syrian regime has forced those wishing to return to their homes in al-Qusayr to obtain a security clearance from security centers, which can sometimes be denied, according to testimonies from residents of al-Qusayr to Enab Baladi.

Zoning plan

The Syrian regime announced a zoning plan for the city of al-Qusayr on October 10, 2018, under Law 10.

This announcement coincided with the absence of a large number of the city’s residents who were displaced from it, preventing their ability to return to object to the decision and prove their ownership.

In April 2018, Syrian regime’s president Bashar al-Assad issued a law to establish “one or more development zones within the general master plan of the administrative units.”

Law No. 10 requires property owners to prove ownership within 30 days, or else they would lose their properties, which will be confiscated by the state.

According to the decision, the state has the right to possess the property “for whoever it sees fit,” opening the door to the confiscation of the properties of the displaced persons who cannot return home in what is deemed “legal” ways.

After a wave of protests and international condemnation, the regime issued a series of amendments including changing the duration for filing objections and proving ownership from one month to one year.