The Syriac Security Office ( syr, ܡܟܬܒܐ ܕܣܘܬܪܐ ܣܘܪܝܝܐ, Mawtbo d'Sutoro Suryoyo, ar, سوتورو), commonly known as the Sutoro or the Sutoro Police, is a
Christian Assyrian/Syriac police force
The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and th ...
in
Jazira Region of the
Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria
The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), also known as Rojava, is a de facto autonomous region in northeastern Syria. It consists of self-governing sub-regions in the areas of Afrin, Jazira, Euphrates, Raqqa, Tabqa, ...
in
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
, where it works in concert with the general
Asayish police force of the canton with the mission to police ethnic Assyrian areas and neighbourhoods. Its establishment is associated with the
Syriac Union Party (SUP).
History
Integration in the Rojava institutions
With the outbreak of the
Syrian Civil War and the
Rojava conflict, Sutoro units were first organized in town of
al-Qahtaniyah (Qabre Hewore), and soon thereafter in
al-Malikiyah
Al-Malikiyah ( ar, ٱلْمَالِكِيَّة, al-Mālikīyah; ku, دێرکا حەمکۆ, translit=Dêrika Hemko; ) also known as Derik, is a small Syrian city and the center of an administrative district belonging to Al-Hasakah Governorate. ...
(Dayrik).
The Syriac Union Party maintains warm and friendly relations with its Kurdish neighbours, and it was one of numerous organizations to join the Kurdish
Democratic Union Party (PYD) in establishing a formal administration for self-governance in northern Syria called
Rojava. Following this policy, the Sutoro has sought to align itself with the Kurdish
People's Defense Units (YPG) from an early juncture.
Although the Kurds were initially suspicious when it started organizing and wanted its members to either disarm or join Kurdish formations, the Sutoro was soon accepted and welcomed by Kurdish forces. It became fully integrated in the administration of the
Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria
The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), also known as Rojava, is a de facto autonomous region in northeastern Syria. It consists of self-governing sub-regions in the areas of Afrin, Jazira, Euphrates, Raqqa, Tabqa, ...
, operating alongside the general Rojavan
Asayish police force, manning joint checkpoints and patrolling neighbourhoods together, while its paramilitary counterpart, the
Syriac Military Council (MFS), joined an alliance with the YPG in January 2014.
Breakaway of group "Sootoro"
The Sutoro Police should not be confused with the
Sootoro, which has the same name in the Syriac language, but uses the English translation "Syriac Protection Office" and the transliteration "Sootoro". This police organization in the city of
Qamishli was originally founded as the local branch of the Sutero but in late 2013 broke away, turning itself into a militia aligned with the
Ba'athist
Ba'athism, also stylized as Baathism, (; ar, البعثية ' , from ' , meaning "renaissance" or "resurrection"Hans Wehr''Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic'' (4th ed.), page 80) is an Arab nationalist ideology which promotes the creation a ...
government of
Bashar Assad.
The Sutoro later founded a new branch in Qamishli.
See also
*
Syriac Military Council
*
Syriac Union Party (Syria)
*
European Syriac Union
*
Dawronoye
*
List of armed groups in the Syrian Civil War
*
Qaraqosh Protection Committee
The Qaraqosh Protection Committee (also known as the Nineveh Plains Security Forces) is an armed militia formed by Assyrians living in the city of Bakhdida, in Ninawa Governorate of Iraq. The committee, formed in 2004, was organized through local ...
External links
Sutoro - Assyrians/Arameans train to protect their areas in Syria RT video
References
{{Rojava topics
Assyrians in Syria
Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria
Assyrian organizations
Dawronoye
Law enforcement in Syria