Clashes between Syrian security forces and gunmen loyal to former president Bashar Assad in the country’s coastal region have left more than 70 people dead and an area outside government control, a war monitor said.
Government forces sent major reinforcements overnight to the cities of Latakia and Tartus as well as nearby towns and villages that are the heartland of the minority Alawite sect and a base of support for Mr Assad, to try to get the situation under control, state media reported.
The clashes are the worst since Mr Assad was removed from power in early December by insurgent groups led by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS.
Reinforcement Syrian security forces deploy in Latakia, Syria (Omar Albam/AP)
Since Mr Assad’s fall, there have been some sectarian attacks against members of his minority Alawite sect.
These incidents have occurred despite the fact that officially the new authorities have said they are against collective punishment or sectarian vengeance.
On Friday morning, large numbers of troops were deployed in Latakia and no civilians were seen in the street as a curfew that was imposed in the city and other coastal areas remains in force.
Members of the security force said there were some clashes in one of the city’s neighbourhoods but most of the city was calm and under government control.
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, said that since the clashes began on Thursday afternoon, 35 members of government forces, 32 fighters loyal to Mr Assad and four civilians have been killed.
The Observatory’s chief Rami Abdurrahman said the outskirts of the coastal towns of Baniyas and Jableh are still under the control of Assad loyalists.
He added that Mr Assad’s hometown of Qardaha and many Alawite villages nearby are also outside government control.
A Qardaha resident told The Associated Press via text messages that the situation “is very bad”.
Smoke rises from a factory hit during clashes by Syrian security forces and gunmen loyal to former president Bashar Assad in the outskirts of Latakia, Syria (AP)
The resident, who asked that his name not be made public for safety reasons, said government forces are firing with heavy machine guns on residential areas in Qardaha.
Another resident said that they have not been able to leave their homes since Thursday afternoon because of the intensity of the shooting.
Mr Abdurrahman said the clashes began when a security force tried to detain a wanted person near Jableh and was ambushed by Assad loyalists.
Syria’s conflict that began in March 2011 has left more than half a million people dead and millions displaced.
– People ask Russia for help
On Friday, scores of people gathered outside the main Russian air base in Syria near Jableh asking for protection from Moscow.
Russia joined Syria’s conflict in 2015, siding with Mr Assad, although it has opened links with the new authorities after his fall.
Mr Assad has been living in Moscow since leaving Syria in December.
Asked about the outbreak of fighting in the coastal region and possible threats to Russian troops, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov responded that “security of our military is ensured on a proper level”.
“I wouldn’t comment on the operational situation as we don’t know details,” Mr Peskov said during a conference call with reporters.