Syrian Transition Hits Violent Sectarian Roadblocks

More than 1,000 people died in Syria in two days of clashes between government security forces and loyalists of ousted President Bashar Assad, in one of the deadliest episodes of violence since Syria’s civil war began 14 years ago, the Associated Press reported.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that at least 745 civilians, 125 government security personnel, and 148 pro-Assad militants had been killed, with entire villages looted and burned.

The violence erupted Thursday when Assad loyalists ambushed security forces in the western province of Latakia, a coastal region that had been a stronghold of the former government. The unrest escalated into revenge killings targeting the Alawite minority by Sunni militias aligned with Syria’s new interim authorities who ousted Assad in December.

Armed factions stormed Alawite-majority areas, executing residents, torching homes, and looting businesses, noted Financial Times. Electricity and water were cut off in large areas, forcing thousands to flee to the mountains or seek refuge at the Russian airbase in Hmeimim, according to Lebanese officials.

The Alawite community, which comprises roughly 12 percent of Syria’s population, has long been associated with Assad’s rule: Alawite officers dominated the upper ranks of the military and intelligence services during his presidency, as well as made up much of the administration.

Many Sunnis, the majority group in Syria, view Alawites as complicit in the brutal repression that marked the more than five decades of rule by the Assads, including massacres, arbitrary detentions, torture, and bombings of civilian areas during the country’s civil war.

Although the interim government has promised accountability rather than collective punishment, residents and rights groups warned the violence amounts to retribution for decades of Alawite dominance under Assad.

Syria’s interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, who led the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) that helped bring down Assad, called for calm, saying that the violence was among the “expected challenges” of the transition.

Al-Sharaa urged for national unity and pledged that those responsible for atrocities would be held accountable.

While the interim leader has sought international legitimacy by distancing himself from his past ties to al Qaeda, human rights groups and foreign governments have expressed skepticism at his efforts.

Observers noted that many of the armed groups responsible for the violence are loosely affiliated with the interim government and operate with little oversight. However, Alawite militias and other groups that have formed during the interim period have been accused of violence against Sunnis.