Branch 40: Syria's Political Police

In October 2005, a broad coalition of Syrian opposition figures — including Kurdish parties, liberals, nationalists, and leftists — issued the Damascus Declaration for National Democratic Change, calling for a peaceful transition to democracy. The regime's response was coordinated by the Political Security Directorate. In the months after the declaration, signatories were summoned to branch offices including Branch 40, interrogated, harassed, and in many cases detained. In 2007, twelve members of the Damascus Declaration's coordinating committee were arrested and tried before the Supreme State Security Court. They received sentences of 2.5 to 12 years. Among those detained was Michel Kilo, the prominent Christian intellectual and human rights activist. His detention at a Political Security facility became an international cause célèbre. Amnesty International declared all twelve prisoners of conscience. The crackdown on the Damascus Declaration demonstrated how the Political Security Directorate served as the primary mechanism for suppressing organized political opposition.