More than 70 dead in Syria clashes between HTS forces and pro-Assad militias

The National

07-03-2025

More than 70 people have been killed in clashes between security forces for Syria's new government and militias loyal to toppled president Bashar Al Assad, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor said on Friday, as violence escalates in the country's coastal region. The fighting saw at least 13 members of Syria's newly formed security forces killed on Thursday in an ambush by militants linked to Mr Al Assad in the area of Jableh, in Latakia province, the government-aligned television network Syria TV reported. That attack was one of the deadliest clashes since rebels led by the Hayat Tahrir Al Sham group took control of Syria and formed the new administration. Tension continues to rise in the Latakia region, the heartland of Mr Al Assad's Alawite sect. Elsewhere in the country, demonstrators turned out in Damascus, Hama, Homs and Idlib in support of the operations by the new security forces to secure Jableh, state news agency Sana reported. Authorities imposed overnight curfews on Alawite-populated areas, including Latakia, the port city of Tartus and third city Homs, Sana said. "More than 70 killed and dozens wounded and captured in bloody clashes and ambushes on the Syrian coast between members of the Ministry of Defence and Interior and militants from the defunct regime's army," the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said in a post on X. It said the fighting in Jableh and adjacent villages had killed 48 people in "the most violent attacks against the new authorities since Assad was toppled" in December. The observatory said pro-Assad fighters killed 16 security personnel, while 28 fighters aligned with the ousted president were also killed, along with four civilians. The monitor said most of the security personnel killed were from the former rebel stronghold of Idlib in the north-west. Amid the violence, security forces also captured and arrested a former general intelligence chief, Ibrahim Huweija, who is accused of organising several assassinations during the rule of Hafez Al Assad, Bashar's father and predecessor, including the killing of Lebanese Druze leader Kamal Jumblatt. "Our forces in the city of Jableh managed to arrest the criminal General Ibrahim Huweija," Syrian state news agency Sana reported. "He is accused of hundreds of assassinations during the era of the criminal Hafez Al Assad." Mr Al Huweija, who headed air force intelligence from 1987 to 2002, has long been a suspect in the 1977 murder of Jumblatt. Elsewhere in Latakia, security forces clashed with gunmen loyal to an Assad-era special forces commander after authorities reportedly launched helicopter strikes in the village of Beit Ana, the provincial security director said. "The armed groups that our security forces were clashing with in the Latakia countryside were affiliated with the war criminal Suhail Al Hassan," the security director told Sana. Nicknamed "The Tiger", Mr Al Hassan formerly led Syria's special forces and was frequently described as Mr Al Assad's "favourite soldier". He was responsible for key military advances by the Assad government in 2015. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported "strikes launched by Syrian helicopters on armed men in the village of Beit Ana and the surrounding forests, coinciding with artillery strikes on a neighbouring village". Sana said pro-Assad militias had opened fire on "members and equipment of the defence ministry" near the village, killing one security force member and wounding two. A defence ministry source later told Sana that large military reinforcements were being deployed to the Jableh area. Fadel Abdul Ghany, executive director of the Syrian Network for Human Rights, said the attacks by pro-Assad elements signalled "a level of planning and organisation that extends beyond isolated or sporadic incidents". "The operational tactics employed, including multi-axis coordination and strategic withdrawal into mountainous terrain post-engagement, reflect elements of well-executed guerrilla warfare," he wrote on X. Islamist rebels led by Hayat Tahrir Al Sham took control of Syria in December in a lightning offensive that toppled Mr Al Assad. The country's new security forces have since carried out extensive campaigns seeking to root out Assad loyalists from his former bastions. Residents and organisations have reported violations during those campaigns, including the seizing of homes, field executions and kidnappings. Syria's new authorities have described the violations as "isolated incidents" and vowed to pursue those responsible.