The General Security Service in Latakia province arrested leaders from the al-Quds Brigade loyal to the previous Assad regime on Sunday, December 29.

Latakia province announced via Facebook that the General Security Service apprehended two leaders from the al-Quds Brigade, naming the first as Bassam Tawfiq, nicknamed “Abu Taha,” who is the second-in-command in the al-Quds Brigade, and the second as Bassam Muhammad Maqsoud, one of the brigade’s commanders.

The province explained that the detainees “have a criminal record against the Syrian people and have desecrated the bodies of the protesters.”

The al-Quds Brigade was established in Aleppo province in 2013 and has been associated with committing crimes such as murder, theft, and drug trafficking.

The arrest of the leaders of the al-Quds Brigade comes as part of a security campaign launched by the Military Operations Administration and the Ministry of Interior of Damascus’ caretaker government to pursue the most wanted individuals accused of crimes against Syrians in various provinces.

In Deir Ezzor, the General Security Service also arrested members of the “shabiha” associated with the Air Force Intelligence branch on the same day.

The Deir Ezzor province reported that due to a large turnout at settlement centers, the security settlement period has been extended starting Sunday until further notice.

In Aleppo, the General Security Service arrested a gang involved in drug trafficking and the theft of residents’ properties in the city.

Meanwhile, the Aleppo Police Command conducted night patrols in the city’s neighborhoods to enhance security and stability in various areas.

The General Security Service in the Ministry of Interior continues to receive illegal weapons from the popular committees that were mobilized by the previous Assad regime in Hama city.

A delegation from the Ministry of Interior met with representatives from the Ish al Warwar area in Damascus province to devise a plan for surrendering illegal weapons outside the state’s control and securing them in the relevant institutions to maintain security and stability for the Syrian people.

On the other hand, a correspondent from Enab Baladi in the Syrian coast reported that the areas there have witnessed a cautious calm following clashes over the past few days, with the security campaign focusing on raids and combing operations searching for elements of the previous regime.

The correspondent reported the arrival of new convoys from the Military Operations Administration to several areas in the countryside of Tartus, particularly in villages heavily populated by “shabiha,” where clashes occurred in several villages south of Tartus using light weapons.

Leaders from the Alawite community issued a statement on December 26, urging their members to surrender weapons, calm the strife, and ensure security following the chaos stirred by elements of the previous regime in areas of Homs and the Syrian coast.

Sheikhs and leaders from the Alawite community in Latakia and Homs called on the Military Operations Administration to establish public security, especially in the Syrian coast, by confiscating weapons from civilians and remnants of the regime, and imposing a curfew to end the chaos that several regions in Syria experienced in recent hours.

Cities along the Syrian coast have witnessed incidents of assault, theft, and targeting by elements of the previous regime, particularly following the circulation of a video discussing the burning of the shrine of a Sheik of the Alawite community in Aleppo.