The Central Crisis Management Cell (CCMC) ( ar, خلية إدارة الأزمة السورية), also known as the ''Syrian Crisis Cell'', is a secret security committee established by the

Syrian government Government of the Syrian Arab Republic is the union government created by the constitution of Syria where by the president is the head of state and the prime minister is the head of government. Executive power is exercised by the government. Syr ...

in March 2011 to coordinate the response to civilian protest and internal dissent. It was headed by Syrian President

Bashar al-Assad Bashar Hafez al-Assad, ', Levantine pronunciation: ; (, born 11 September 1965) is a Syrian politician who is the 19th president of Syria, since 17 July 2000. In addition, he is the commander-in-chief of the Syrian Armed Forces and the ...

, and its members included the heads of the National Security Office, Military Intelligence Directorate,

Air Force Intelligence Directorate The Air Force Intelligence Directorate ( ar, إدارة المخابرات الجوية, ''Idarat al-Mukhabarat al-Jawiyya'') is an intelligence service of Syria, possibly the country's most powerful, owing its importance to Hafez al-Assad's role ...

Political Security Directorate Political Security Directorate (PSD, ar, إدارة الأمن السياسي, ''Idarat al-Amn al-Siyasi'') is an intelligence service of the Syrian government. It is divided into an Internal Security Department and an External Security Departm ...

, and General Intelligence Directorate, as well as the Ministers of Interior and Defense. The CCMC met regularly in an office on the first floor of the Baath Party's Regional Command in central Damascus. It focused on identifying opposition figures and taking the necessary steps to crush dissent. CCMC members agreed on a plan at the end of each meeting, and minutes were sent via courier to Bashar al-Assad at the presidential palace, who approved and signed proposals, then returned them to the CCMC for implementation.

Members

The CCMC is headed by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and comprises the following members *

Maher al-Assad Maher al-Assad ( ar, مَاهِرُ ٱلْأَسَدِ, Māhir al-ʾAsad, born 8 December 1967) is a Syrian general and commander of the Republican Guard and the army's elite Fourth Armoured Division, which together with Syria's secret police ...

, head of the Presidential Guard and the Fourth Armored Division * Minister of Defense * Minister of Interior * Head of National Security Office * Head of Military Intelligence Directorate * Head of Air Force Intelligence Directorate * Head of Political Security Directorate * Head of General Intelligence Directorate

Bombing attack

On 18 July 2012, a meeting of the CCMC at the National Security headquarters in Damascus was subject to a bombing attack that led to the deaths of the Syrian Defense Minister

Dawoud Rajiha Dawoud Abdallah Rajiha ( ar, داود راجحة‎; 1947 – 18 July 2012), forename sometimes transliterated Dawood or Daoud, surname sometimes transliterated Rajha, was the Syrian minister of defense from 2011 to July 2012 when he was assas ...

, Deputy Defense Minister

Assef Shawkat Assef Shawkat ( ar, آصِفُ شَوْكَتْ, ʾĀṣif Šawkat‎; 15 January 1950 – 18 July 2012) was the deputy Minister of Defense of Syria from September 2011 until his death in July 2012. He was the brother-in-law of Syrian Preside ...

, and the assistant to the vice president General

Hasan Turkmani Hasan Ali Turkmani ( ar, حسن توركماني; 27 January 1935 – 18 July 2012) was a prominent Syrian military commander and Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party member. He served as the minister of defense in Syria from 2004 to 2009. He and t ...

Meeting minute leaks

In 2012, Abdulhalim Barakat, a secret member of the Syrian government opposition employed by the CCMC to process confidential security memos, leaked detailed minutes from CCMC meetings to ''Al Jazeera''.

References

Syrian civil war {{Syria-stub