The Struggle Companies ( ar, سرايا الصراع; ''Saraya al-Sira'') was 5,000-strong commando force deployed around
Damascus
)), is an adjective which means "spacious".
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, ...
. Created in 1973 and commanded by Maj. Gen
Adnan Assad, a cousin of the late Syrian president,
Hafez Assad
Hafez al-Assad ', , (, 6 October 1930 – 10 June 2000) was a Syrian statesman and military officer who served as President of Syria from taking power in 1971 until his death in 2000. He was also Prime Minister of Syria from 1970 to 197 ...
.
[MIDDLE EAST SECURITY REPORT 8:The Assad Regime by Joseph Holliday, dtd March 2013] The all
Alawite
The Alawis, Alawites ( ar, علوية ''Alawīyah''), or pejoratively Nusayris ( ar, نصيرية ''Nuṣayrīyah'') are an ethnoreligious group that lives primarily in Levant and follows Alawism, a sect of Islam that originated from Shia Isl ...
Struggle Companies are broadly similar to the
Defense Companies
The Defense Companies ( ar, سرايا الدفاع; ) were a paramilitary force in Syria that were commanded by Rifaat al-Assad. Their task was to defend the Assad government, and Damascus, from internal and external attack. In 1984 the 55,000 st ...
and are/were fanatically loyal to the Syrian government and were heavily used during the 1982
Hama
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, postal_code_type =
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, ar ...
Muslim Brotherhood uprising
The Syrian president exercises direct control over the Saraya al-Sira',
Saraya al-Difa', and the
Republican Guard
A republican guard, sometimes called a national guard, is a state organization of a country (often a republic, hence the name ''Republican'') which typically serves to protect the head of state and the government, and thus is often synonymous wit ...
all of whom function as a
Praetorian Guard
The Praetorian Guard (Latin: ''cohortēs praetōriae'') was a unit of the Imperial Roman army that served as personal bodyguards and intelligence agents for the Roman emperors. During the Roman Republic, the Praetorian Guard were an escort fo ...
.
[Arab Amies of the Middle East Wars (2), Osprey Men at Arms series #194 p43 by Samuel Katz] The headquarters of the Saraya al-Sira' is
Mezzeh Military Airport
The Saraya al-Sira' wore combat uniforms quite distinct from the regular Syrian military, their uniform consisted of
lizard-patterned camouflage fatigues along with Soviet combat boots, helmets and bulletproof vests. Headgear consisted of a red or orange beret.
See also
*
Defense Companies (Syria)
*
Shabiha
''Shabiha'' (Levantine Arabic: ', ; also romanized ''Shabeeha'' or ''Shabbiha''; ) is a term for state sponsored militias of the Syrian government. However, in the Aleppo Governorate the term Shabiha is used frequently to refer to pro-Assad Sunn ...
References
Sources
* Arabs at War: Military Effectiveness 1948-91, Kenneth M. Pollack, University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln and London, 2002, and Pollack's book reviewed in International Security, Vol. 28, No. 2
* Arab Armies of the Middle East Wars (Men-at-Arms, 194) by Samuel Katz, Osprey Publishing 1988,
* Armies in Lebanon 1982 to 1984 (Men at Arms Series, 165) by Samuel Katz and Ronald Volstad, Osprey Publishing 1985,
External links
LOC country study
{{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017
Military units and formations established in 1973
Special forces of Syria