Russian-backed Qaterji militia exploits minors in Syria's east

The Russian-backed, pro-Syrian regime Qaterji militia is actively recruiting minors in eastern Syria's Deir Ezzor province, sending some to headquarters and security checkpoints in the cities of Deir Ezzor and Albu Kamal, local activists said.

The militia has carried out a massive campaign to recruit teenagers between the ages of 13 and 17, offering them a meagre monthly stipend for their service, Albu Kamal media activist Ayham al-Ali told Al-Mashareq.

It also provides recruits' families with food baskets, gifts and other assistance as an enticement to send their sons to sign up.

One of the conditions of joining the militia is that new recruits or their families may not speak publicly about it, al-Ali said, noting that many are so impoverished that the even the low payment attracts them.

Few real job opportunities exist in the area, he said, with the exception of some seasonal employment during planting and harvest seasons.

Teenage recruits are sent to militia headquarters and checkpoints in Albu Kamal and to the 137th Regiment command centre in southern Deir Ezzor city, he said.

"This means the region's security is now in the hands of children, and civilians are subject to potentially reckless or irrational behaviour," al-Ali said.

In a recent example of recklessness, Qaterji militiamen stationed at a checkpoint in the Deir Ezzor town of Baqrus shot at and injured a member of the National Defence Forces (NDF), another pro-regime militia, a war monitor reported.

The NDF militiaman was apparently drunk and had refused to stop his car at the checkpoint when he was asked to do so, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

In a previous sign of conflict among pro-regime forces in the area, the Observatory said, NDF militiamen on May 10 targeted a joint patrol of regime forces in Deir Ezzor city's Tab al-Jourah neighbourhood.

Both sides suffered casualties, it said, noting that the area is controlled by regime forces and Iranian militias.

Qaterji militia's expansion

The Qaterji militia was established after the "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" (ISIS) overran eastern Syria, said activist Abboud al-Hameed, who is an administrator of the Albu Kamal Revolutionaries Telegram account.

It has multiple posts and headquarters in villages and towns in eastern Deir Ezzor province, especially in areas east of the Euphrates river, he told Al-Mashareq.

Led by Hussam Qaterji, the militia was established by the Qaterji family, which owns many companies in Syria and fully supports the Syrian regime.

The Arvada petroleum company, a Qaterji family firm, was awarded contracts to transport oil from areas controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to regime-controlled areas, and to protect the region's oil fields for five years.

The militia expanded after 2019 with the support of Russian forces, and it now has an estimated 3,800 militiamen, most of whom are active in its special tasks division, al-Hameed said.

The special tasks division protects the oil wells in al-Ward, al-Shula and al-Taym oil fields, he said, while the militia's three other units comprise the village guard, the tanker guard division and a division active in smuggling operations.

Meanwhile, the new child recruits are posted at checkpoints and at the militia's posts and headquarters, he said.

Exploiting Syrian minors

Syrian lawyer Bashir al-Bassam said recruiting minors for the Qaterji militia has devastating consequences for Deir Ezzor, as the militia, in addition to smuggling oil, smuggles and distributes drugs, cigarettes and other contraband.

"The children will naturally be exploited as distribution tools and exposed to the risk of drug abuse, which threatens an entire generation," he said.

"The region has barely started breathing again after the demise of ISIS and the threat it posed to the youth, only to see these militias carry out the same destructive activities," he told Al-Mashareq.