Christians and other religious minorities have been massacred in Syria as violence erupts following the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad three months ago.
More than 1,000 people have been killed since Thursday in what observers describe as the worst violence since Assad’s downfall in December.
The killings have targeted Alawites, Christians and other minorities in Syria’s coastal regions.
The violence began with an ambush on a Syrian security patrol by gunmen loyal to ousted leader Assad near the port city of Latakia.
Smoke rises while members of the Syrian forces ride on a vehicle as they battle against a nascent insurgency
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Members of security forces loyal to the interim Syrian government pose together
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A member of the Syrian security forces stands near a tree while holding his weapon
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This sparked a brutal crackdown by forces linked to Syria’s new Islamist rulers, led by interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former leader of the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).
Rights groups report widespread sectarian killings, with hundreds of civilians among the dead.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that 745 civilians have been killed, mostly in shootings, with additional deaths among security forces and militants.
Rami Abdulrahman of the Observatory called the killings “sectarian massacres that aim to expel the Alawite population from their homes.”
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People protest against the killing of civilians and security forces linked to Syria’s new rulers
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Smoke rises while members of the Syrian forces ride on a vehicle as they battle against a nascent insurgency
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Security forces loyal to the interim Syrian government ride in the back of a vehicle moving along a road in Syria’s western city of Latakia
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Witnesses described horrific scenes in the cities of Jableh, Baniyas and surrounding areas in Syria’s Alawite heartland.
Two residents from the coastal region reported that many homes belonging to Alawite families were looted and set on fire. Thousands of Alawites and Christians have fled their homes since Thursday, fearing for their lives.
Several hundred, mostly women, children and the elderly, sought refuge at a Russian Mediterranean military base at Hmeimim in Latakia.
The violence has spread across several cities and towns in the largely Alawite coastal region.
Ancient Roman columns stand in a park in Syria’s western city of Latakia
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Members of the Syrian security forces check a car as they battle against a nascent insurgency
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The Syria Campaign and the Syrian Network for Human Rights reported that both security forces and pro-Assad gunmen were “carrying out mass executions and systematic killings”.
The SNHR estimated that 125 of approximately 140 civilians were slain over the weekend in “suspected revenge killings”.
Conservative MP Andrew Rosindell described the violence as “a massacre reminiscent of October 7th” and “nothing less than a brutal crime against humanity”.
He stated: “From footage I have seen, Alawite Muslims, Christians, Druze and other minorities are being hunted down, tortured and murdered in cold blood.”
The MP for Romford called it a “reign of terror” perpetrated by “barbaric jihadist terrorists”.
Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa
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Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa has appealed to Syrians and the international community, calling for accountability for anyone who harms civilians or mistreats prisoners. Al-Sharaa formed a committee composed mostly of judges to investigate the violence.
In a televised address, he urged security forces not to “exaggerate in their response… because what differentiates us from our enemy is our commitment to our values.”
Damascus has blamed “individual actions” for the widespread violence against civilians. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged Syrian authorities to “hold the perpetrators of these massacres” accountable.
Rubio stated that the US “stands with Syria’s religious and ethnic minorities, including its Christian, Druze, Alawite, and Kurdish communities.”