Syria forces say clashing with gunmen affiliated with an al-Assad-era commander
Syrian forces were clashing with gunmen affiliated with an al-Assad-era special forces commander in Latakia on Thursday, the province's security director said, after authorities reportedly launched helicopter strikes in the area.
'The armed groups that our security forces were clashing with in the Latakia countryside were affiliated with the war criminal Suhail al-Hassan, who committed the most heinous massacres against the Syrian people,' the security director told state news agency SANA.
Leaders of al-Assad's Alawite minority later called for peaceful protests in response to the reported helicopter strikes, which came after SANA said gunmen killed a member of the security forces.
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