Sectarian Tensions Force Out Some Residents in Government Housing

After the ousting of the Assad regime, some residents in social housing complexes designated for employees and workers, particularly in Damascus and its countryside, were either temporarily forced to leave or permanently evicted. This stems from a widespread popular belief that a significant proportion of the residents in these complexes were supporters of the former regime and formed part of its social base, especially in housing allocated to doctors, police officers, military personnel, or staff in scientific research centres affiliated with the Ministry of Defence.

Residents of these housing complexes are often employees from distant areas working near these complexes. These properties are typically designated as either employee or labour housing, part of Syria’s social housing programmes, with unclear ownership due to overlapping laws and the government entity responsible for the housing. For instance, employee housing is meant for temporary use, with ownership remaining with the state. Occupants of employee housing are treated as tenants, leasing the property from the state during their employment until resignation or retirement, at which point the lease ends, and the property must be vacated. Labour housing, on the other hand, requires tenants to pay 10 percent of their income as rent, along with utility bills and costs for home maintenance, improvements, and repairs. Residents of labour housing are entitled to ownership under Legislative Decree No. 46 of 2002, provided they pay for the property in installments.

In one recent case, an Alawite family residing in police housing in Harasta, in the Rural Damascus governorate, decided on December 8 to temporarily stay with relatives in a coastal village away from the capital. The father, a doctor who served in the police under Assad, and the family feared potential reprisals. According to The Syria Report’s correspondent, the family did not own any other property. A week later, they decided to return, only to find local armed men occupying their home, with some belongings damaged. The armed men, who were reportedly unaffiliated with any organised group, refused to vacate the apartment, claiming their right to occupy it. Faced with potential danger, the family chose to leave the home to the armed men and requested permission to take some furniture and personal belongings. After prolonged and tense negotiations, the armed men allowed the family to remove a few possessions. Similar cases happened with other Alawite families residing in police housing in Harasta.

Another incident involved an engineer and military officer with the rank of lieutenant colonel, who rented an apartment in a “military academy” housing building in Harasta, and who lived there with his wife and children. Two weeks after the regime’s fall, members of Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) inspected the housing complex and gave residents until summer to vacate. The officer underwent a settlement process – a preliminary security investigation conducted by the group to record personal data and background information about former regime officers, akin to the security settlements imposed by the regime on opposition fighters. Despite the settlement and deadline, dozens of masked gunmen stormed the officer’s apartment, demanding immediate evacuation. After intense negotiations, the armed men allowed the family to stay one night to gather their belongings and plan their move, leaving the following morning. The officer managed to transport some furniture to a nearby rented apartment with the help of acquaintances. The Syria Report could not determine why this officer’s family in particular was targeted or whether similar cases occurred in academy housing. It was not clear whether the eviction was linked to allegations of his involvement in crimes against the opposition during the regime’s rule.

A similar situation occurred with an Alawite family living in military housing in the “March 8”suburb in Barada, Rural Damascus. The family, consisting of the husband, a military officer from Qardaha in Rural Lattakia, his wife, an engineer, and their children, remained in their home after the regime’s fall. On December 9, armed men who appeared unaffiliated with any organised group stormed the home, the wife told The Syria Report. The armed men issued sectarian threats, forcing the family to vacate and forbidding them from using their military vehicle. The wife noted that the group searched other apartments in the area, threatening some families, but no physical harm was reported. The Syria Report could not confirm whether other families were evicted in the suburb.

In another case, a Christian family, with a member working at the Scientific Research Centre in Barzeh, Damascus, lived in “research housing,” part of a prefabricated housing complex. The family rented the home from the state as employee housing for a nominal fee. A week after the regime’s fall, a group from HTS arrived at the family’s home, ordering them to vacate, citing the cessation of “scientific research” activities due to the near-total destruction caused by recent Israeli airstrikes. According to a family member, the group was not hostile but forced them to leave. Lacking alternative housing or sufficient financial resources to rent another home in Damascus, the family temporarily relied on acquaintances but now faces the risk of homelessness.