Raqqa security detain ex-National Defense commander Turki al-Bouhamad

Syrian security forces arrested Turki al-Marei, known as Turki al-Bouhamad, at his residence in Raqqa on Thursday, May 28. Al-Bouhamad is a former commander in the National Defense militia linked to Major General Suhail al-Hassan and led forces in the Raqqa countryside towns of al-Bouhamad, Maadan and al-Sabkha during the regime’s control. Residents and activists in Raqqa have demanded he be investigated and referred to the judiciary on accusations of crimes against civilians. After the regime’s collapse he reportedly fled to areas then controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces and was not observed to be militarily active; the Interior Ministry had not issued a statement about the arrest at the time of reporting.

This arrest is described as the first of its kind by internal security in Raqqa since the province came under government control in January. It comes amid a wider series of Interior Ministry operations across several provinces targeting former regime officers and officials accused of wartime violations — for example, the recent arrest of Amjad Youssef in Hama countryside, a suspect in the Tadamon massacre — while some other former commanders, such as Fadi Saqr, remain at large under settlement arrangements even as legal committees prepare cases against them. as reported by Enab Baladi