Active 2012–present Type Police Nickname(s) Sutoro | Country Syria Size 1,000+ (June 2013) Role Police | |
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Allegiances Syriac Union Party, Rojava | ||
The Syriac Security Office (Syriac: ܡܟܬܒܐ ܕܣܘܬܪܐ ܣܘܪܝܝܐ, Arabic: سوتورو), commonly known as the Sutoro or the Sutoro Police, is an ethnic Assyrian, Syriac-Christian police force in Jazira Canton of the Federation of Northern Syria – Rojava in Syria, 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).
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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 (Dayrik). The Syriac Union Party maintains warm and friendly relations with its Kurdish neighbours, and it was one of numerous organisations 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 Protection Units (YPG) from an early juncture. Although the Kurds were initially suspicious when it started organising 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 Federation of Northern Syria – Rojava, operating alongside the general Rojavan Asayish police force, manning joint checkpoints and patrolling neighbourhoods together, while its paramilitary counterpart, the Syriac Military Council (MFS), formally joined with 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 organization founded as the local branch of the Sutero but in late 2013 broke away, turning itself into a militia aligned with the Ba'athist government of Bashar Assad. The Sutoro later founded a new branch in Qamishli.
