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Middle East Eye
15-03-2025
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
'He was still a child': Grief and fear at Latakia hospital
At the National Hospital in Latakia, a coastal city in the heartland of the Alawite minority, the watchful presence of Syria's new authorities is constant. Visibly shaken, Alawite Syrians arrive to identify the bodies of their loved ones, killed in the recent and deadliest wave of violence in the country since the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad. What began as an attack on security forces by Assad loyalists - many from the former president's Alawite sect - quickly spiralled into revenge attacks on civilians, leaving hundreds dead and thousands displaced. Civilians belonging to the Alawite community were particularly targeted. Medical staff say security forces, some unidentified, have been posted at the hospital since 6 March, when the violence erupted, and have remained there since. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Fear on the faces On the morning of 11 March, the day after the government concluded its military operation, terror-stricken families rushed to hospitals on Syria's western coast to find their loved ones. At the National Hospital, a man arrived at the morgue to claim the body of his neighbour, one of two brothers who were killed on 7 March. When asked about the perpetrators, he glanced at an armed man wearing a mask concealing half of his face, closely following the conversation. Over 800 extrajudicial killings documented in coastal Syria violence Read More » In a hushed voice, he responded: "Possibly thieves, I really don't know." Meanwhile, a mother there to identify her murdered son is cut off by her husband: "Don't share any information; it could endanger us." Another mother, Rim, stood nearby with her neighbour - both there to retrieve her son's body. The urgency in the mother's eyes was palpable, but she stayed silent. Her neighbour, referring to the deceased as "our son", said that he was killed two days earlier by "armed men". Another armed security member stood just a metre away. The fear on the faces of the few Alawites present was clear. Seizing a moment of distraction, Rim discreetly shared her phone number. 'He never held a weapon' Over the phone, Rim, whose name was changed for her protection, spoke fervently, her voice filled with shock as she relayed the details of her story. Before heading out to spend the evening with friends, her son - a 19-year-old engineering student - asked his mother not to call. 'When they led me there, bodies covered the floor. But I was lucky. My son was in a refrigerator' - Rim, Alawite civilian Concerned about the clashes that had erupted on the coast that morning, she called him the next day: "Ahmed?" she asked anxiously. Instead of her son's voice, she heard a stranger identifying himself as general security. "Your son was killed. He's here with a bullet in his head. He was a regime loyalist," the man said. Hoping for a mistake, Rim pleaded: "He hasn't even served in the army. Can you describe his clothes?" "He's dressed in black trousers and a black jacket," the man replied. That morning at the morgue, Rim found her son. "When they led me there, bodies covered the floor. But I was lucky. My son was in a refrigerator," she said. "My son is tall, fat and bearded, looking older than his age," she added, thinking he might have been mistaken for a "military" for this reason. "He never held a weapon. He was still a child." Syrian authorities told Rim she had two days to ask for her son's body. "I never imagined I'd have to do this," she said. Citing fears of retaliation, she has decided against holding a funeral. Reassuring minorities Pressure has been growing on Syria's government, led by interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, to investigate the killing of at least 1,500 civilians, including women, children and entire families. Syrian Alawis sheltering in Lebanon say it isn't safe to return home Read More » The Syrian Network for Human Rights said at least 803 extrajudicial killings were committed by all sides involved in the clashes, including forces loyal to Assad, government forces, groups loosely affiliated with the Syrian government and individual gunmen. The sectarian violence in villages with large Alawite communities has been the biggest challenge to Sharaa since coming to power after the overthrow of Assad in December. Aron Lund, an analyst at Century International, said the violence has shown the fragility of the new power, supported in part by Islamists "hostile to the Alawis". The interim president's rhetoric has been aimed at reassuring minorities and advocating appeasement, even if this approach is not "uniformly adopted by all the factions under his command", Lund told Middle East Eye. At the National Hospital in Latakia, the authorities' discomfort was palpable. An administrative official repeatedly stated in a mechanical tone: "I am not allowed to give interviews. No statistics will be released until we have official permission." 'The hospital has become their base' Sitting in a car parked along the deserted coast on a sunny day, a young, terrified doctor spoke of her ordeal since the violence erupted. Like about 50 other staff members, she did not leave the hospital during the clashes, sleeping in the hospital quarters out of fear for her safety. A weekend from hell in coastal Syria Read More » She recounted seeing a patient, who had come to the hospital for a scan, being beaten before her eyes on 7 March, accused of being loyal to Assad. "They hit him in the chest and face, and I was just a metre away." The doctor does not know what became of the man. Since Assad's fall, the atmosphere of inter-community mistrust - fuelled by 14 years of civil war and perpetuated by the Assad family - has reached unprecedented levels. The doctor criticised the interference of Syrian forces in hospital operations. "They enter armed and interrogate patients: 'Where are you from? How did you sustain these wounds?'" she said. Her claims were supported by several colleagues who spoke to MEE. One doctor in his thirties said: "The hospital has become their base. They come and go armed, and we can't even determine their affiliations." 'How can we feel safe?' The security forces of the new government now encompass several factions, including the militant group Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham, which led the offensive that brought down Assad. "It was worse during Assad's era. The 'shabiha' - regime enforcers - would enter the hospital and do whatever they pleased, showing no regard for the doctors," another doctor remarked. 'Every time I leave my home for the hospital, I see the fear in my mother's eyes that it might be the last time she sees me' - Doctor, National Hospital An audio message from a health administrative official in Latakia received on 11 March said: "The situation is back to normal. We are now tracking absences. It's a safe country, God willing." A follow-up message emphasised: "The roads are clear, no more excuses." The hospital, predominantly staffed by Alawites, saw the appointment of a Sunni vice president by the new authorities, Dr Moataz Fadliye, a month earlier. Sitting in his office, where the new three-star Syrian flag hung on the wall, he appeared hesitant to discuss recent events, mentioning only "the hundred wounded treated here in the first two days: soldiers, general security and Syrian army members" - without mentioning civilian casualties. On 9 March, Sharaa announced the creation of an "independent" commission to investigate the recent turmoil in the coastal region, including what led to the outbreak, abuses against civilians and attacks on institutions. However, this has done little to reassure the Alawite community. The doctor, speaking from her car, admitted: "I don't trust him." "Every time I leave my home for the hospital, I see the fear in my mother's eyes that it might be the last time she sees me. How can we feel safe in this country after what happened ?" another doctor said.
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Fear lingers after Syrian violence as hundreds seek refuge
After the outbreaks of violence in Syria at the weekend, activists said on Tuesday that members of the Alawite religious minority in particular are still afraid of new attacks. "Everybody is terrified. Some people returned to their homes with the assurances of the security forces on the ground but others are still confined to mountains areas," a resident of Banias told dpa on condition of anonymity. He added that people in the coastal areas which witnessed violence, especially Banias, Jable and Latakia, are mainly confined to their homes - especially men. "Woman are buying the food and necessities for the homes, men are staying indoors with the children," he said. Around 1,000 people have also sought refuge in the Russian air base of Hmeimim on Syria's Mediterranean coast, Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told dpa. The New York Times also reported the same, citing satellite images. Hundreds of people were on the grounds of the Russian base in Hmeimim and the adjacent Latakia airport. Russia was one of the closest allies of Syria's deposed long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad. The clashes began on Thursday. According to the new rulers in Damascus, armed supporters of the deposed al-Assad government attacked security forces in the coastal province of Latakia. The transitional government responded with a large-scale military operation. Refugees flee to Lebanon Meanwhile in northern Lebanon's Akkar region, mainly Alawite Syrians arrived after crossing a river that splits Syria and Lebanon. Children, the elderly and women crossed with their belongings, according to an eyewitness in the area. He added that they were met on the other side by Lebanese people from the Alawite religion, who drove them to nearby villages. "We lived in hell. The killing was frantic," an 80-year-old Syrian named Hussein Ismail from the coastal city of Tartour said weeping as he was carried on a chair by youths. Fellow refugee Hussam Al Ali, 46, told dpa they did not dare to venture from our home for five days. "We fled our village which is located on the edge of the river and then we crossed into Lebanon," he said. Lisa Abou Khaled, UNHCR spokeswoman in Lebanon, said that according to Lebanese authorities, 6,078 individuals have arrived in around a dozen villages in northern Lebanon alone. She added that "at the request of the government, the humanitarian community (including UNHCR, WFP, UNICEF and the Lebanese Red Cross) is providing immediate basic assistance to this group in the form of ready-to-eat food, hygiene kits and basic items, including blankets from UNHCR." According to the observatory, a total of around 1,500 people were killed in the recent violence, most of them civilians. Activists say the religious minority of the Alawites, to which Al-Assad also belongs, was particularly targeted. The transitional government saw the outbreak of violence as an attempt by Al-Assad loyalists to plunge the country into a new civil war after over a decade of conflict before his December ouster.
Arab News
11-03-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
HRW says Syria must protect civilians after ‘killing spree'
BEIRUT: Human Rights Watch on Tuesday called on the Syrian Arab Republic's new authorities to ensure accountability for the mass killings of hundreds of civilians in recent days in the coastal heartland of the Alawite minority. Violence broke out Thursday as security forces clashed with gunmen loyal to former president Bashar Assad, who is Alawite, in areas along the Mediterranean coast. Since then, war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said security forces and allied groups had killed at least 1,093 civilians, the vast majority Alawites. 'Syria's new leaders promised to break with the horrors of the past, but grave abuses on a staggering scale are being reported against predominantly Alawite Syrians in the coastal region and elsewhere in Syria,' said HRW's deputy regional director Adam Coogle. 'Government action to protect civilians and prosecute perpetrators of indiscriminate shootings, summary executions, and other grave crimes must be swift and unequivocal,' he said in a statement decrying the 'coastal killing spree.' The New York-based rights group said it was 'not able to verify the number of civilians killed or displaced, but obituaries circulating on Facebook indicate hundreds were killed, including entire families.' The wave of violence is the worst since forces led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) launched a lightning offensive that toppled Assad on December 8, capping a 13-year civil war. Syria's interim President Ahmed Al-Sharaa, who led HTS, has vowed to 'hold accountable, firmly and without leniency, anyone who was involved in the bloodshed of civilians.' The defense ministry announced on Monday the end of the 'military operation' seeking to root out 'regime remnants' in the coastal areas. But according to the Britain-based Observatory, another 120 civilians have been killed since then, the majority of them in Latakia and Tartus provinces on the coast — where much of the earlier violence since last week had occurred. Authorities have announced the arrest of at least two fighters seen in videos killing civilians, the official news agency SANA reported. HRW said that 'accountability for atrocities must include all parties,' including groups like HTS and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army that 'now constitute Syria's new security forces.' 'These groups have a well-documented history of human rights abuses and violations of international law,' it added. HTS, which has its roots in the Syrian branch of jihadist network Al-Qaeda, is still proscribed as a terrorist organization by several governments including the United States. Since toppling Assad and taking power, Sharaa has vowed to protect Syria's religious and ethnic minorities. In its statement, HRW called on the authorities to 'fully cooperate with and ensure unhindered access to independent monitors.' Syria's presidency had announced that an 'independent committee' was formed to investigate the killings. The panel is due to hold its first press conference later Tuesday.
Khaleej Times
11-03-2025
- Politics
- Khaleej Times
HRW says Syria must protect civilians after 'killing spree'
Human Rights Watch on Tuesday called on Syria's new authorities to ensure accountability for the mass killings of hundreds of civilians in recent days in the coastal heartland of the Alawite minority. Violence broke out Thursday as security forces clashed with gunmen loyal to former president Bashar Al Assad, who is Alawite, in areas along the Mediterranean coast. Since then, war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said security forces and allied groups had killed at least 1,093 civilians, the vast majority Alawites. "Syria's new leaders promised to break with the horrors of the past, but grave abuses on a staggering scale are being reported against predominantly Alawite Syrians in the coastal region and elsewhere in Syria," said HRW's deputy regional director Adam Coogle. "Government action to protect civilians and prosecute perpetrators of indiscriminate shootings, summary executions, and other grave crimes must be swift and unequivocal," he said in a statement decrying the "coastal killing spree". The New York-based rights group said it was "not able to verify the number of civilians killed or displaced, but obituaries circulating on Facebook indicate hundreds were killed, including entire families". The wave of violence is the worst since forces led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS) launched a lightning offensive that toppled Assad on December 8, capping a 13-year civil war. Syria's interim President Ahmed Al Sharaa, who led HTS, has vowed to "hold accountable, firmly and without leniency, anyone who was involved in the bloodshed of civilians". The defence ministry announced on Monday the end of the "military operation" seeking to root out "regime remnants" in the coastal areas. But according to the Britain-based Observatory, another 120 civilians have been killed since then, the majority of them in Latakia and Tartus provinces on the coast — where much of the earlier violence since last week had occurred. Authorities have announced the arrest of at least two fighters seen in videos killing civilians, the official news agency SANA reported. HRW said that "accountability for atrocities must include all parties", including groups like HTS and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army that "now constitute Syria's new security forces". "These groups have a well-documented history of human rights abuses and violations of international law," it added. HTS, which has its roots in the Syrian branch of jihadist network Al Qaeda, is still proscribed as a terrorist organisation by several governments including the United States. Since toppling Assad and taking power, Sharaa has vowed to protect Syria's religious and ethnic minorities. In its statement, HRW called on the authorities to "fully cooperate with and ensure unhindered access to independent monitors". Syria's presidency had announced that an "independent committee" was formed to investigate the killings. The panel is due to hold its first press conference later on Tuesday.
