TARTUS, Syria — Despite the bloody battles across Syria, many young men residing in regime-controlled regions have managed to escape military service for the last three years. But in early November, the Syrian authorities implemented new measures that have made evasion almost impossible unless the young men leave the country — no easy option, either.

Syrian authorities are on the hunt for draft dodgers, deploying across regime-held areas and raiding public places. "Mohammad" (a pseudonym), 33, is afraid of wandering the streets of Tartus after the tough first few weeks of November.

He said, “The military police were deployed across the city and started raiding public cafes, workshops in the industrial region and the houses of some young men who were called to report to service. The checkpoint officers confiscated the IDs of men in public transportation vehicles, as their names were on the list of those who were called up for duty in the military reserve force. I should have reported to the military reserve force over a year ago, but before these measures were taken, I was leading a normal life.

“At first, I thought that people were exaggerating and that these were just rumors. But one of my friends told me that he saw military policemen carrying a laptop and raiding a small cafe in the city. Then, they closed the doors and collected the IDs of all the men in there. The police dragged three young men off, as their names matched those on the laptop, after allowing them to make only one phone call to their families,” Mohammad added.