Latest news with #SyrianObservatory
The National
5 hours ago
- Politics
- The National
Six dead in 'arms depot' explosion in Syria's Idlib
A powerful blast rocked Syria's north-western Idlib province on Thursday, killing at least six people and injuring eight, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Syrian state news agency Sana reported "an explosion in the vicinity of the city of Idlib". Though Syrian state media has yet to reveal the cause of the blast, the UK-based observatory reported that it occurred at an ammunition warehouse and headquarters of non-Syrian fighters. At least two of those killed were civilians, including one child, according to the observatory. Syria's civil defence said on X that there were two children among the dead and that the blast caused a fire at the site. The observatory said the blast coincided with flights by drones over the region. On July 24, another large explosion occurred at an ammunition depot near the town of Maarat Misrin in Idlib. At least six people were killed and more than 100 were injured, the civil defence said. Syria TV reported 'war remnants and ammunition' had exploded at the site. Syria is struggling to recover from a nearly 14-year civil war involving numerous armed groups, including fighters from abroad. The war ended with the toppling of former president Bashar Al Assad in December.
The National
07-08-2025
- Politics
- The National
Rising crime poses challenge for Syrian authorities as stability remains elusive
Every August, Syrian architect Fayyad Salem escapes the heat in Damascus by heading to the mountain town of Marmarita, in the west of the country. When he embarked on the two-hour drive this week, his brother-in-law insisted on going with him. 'He thought it would be safer because of the highway robberies and kidnapping,' Mr Salem said. 'We are both unarmed and his presence would not help.' When the two men reached Marmarita, it was empty. Thousands of tourists and people who owned second homes in the town continued to travel there during the civil war, when security personnel at regime roadblocks extorted passengers, but the road was considered relatively safe. 'Marmarita is dead. No one goes there any more. They are afraid to be on that road,' Mr Salem said. Nine months after former president Bashar Al Assad was deposed, rising crime has posed a challenge to a drive by the new government to portray Syria as ready for investment and encourage the return of the country's diaspora. Since the start of this year, 254 people have been killed for apparently non-political reasons across the country, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Clashes this year have also led to the deaths of Alawites, Druze and Bedouins. Displacement and a lack of full-year data makes it difficult to compare the statistics to previous levels. The observatory said the 254 reported killed this year included 40 women and 14 children. The largest proportion of the deaths occurred in the southern province of Deraa, where 52 lost their lives. It found that 41 were killed in Damascus and the surrounding areas, while 18 died in northern Aleppo province. Seventeen people were killed in the coastal province of Latakia, 28 died in Hama and 18 were killed in Homs. During the civil war, the Assad regime carried out indiscriminate bombing campaigns on rebel cities and towns, and tortured and killed its opponents. Passing through its security roadblocks involved paying bribes, while protection rackets in big cities were often formed from within the system. Amid persistent instability in Syria, cases of armed robbery, kidnappings and car theft have become common, business owners said. "A Beretta with an 18-round magazine is on me all the time," said an Aleppo merchant who has been making regular trips to Damascus to expand his retail businesses. In Maliki, the most affluent district of the capital, actress Diala Al Wadi was found dead in her apartment on Sunday. Residents said her apartment had been burgled. Within 24 hours, security forces arrested a man suspected of killing her, as well as detaining her housekeeper in connection with the crime. Justice Minister Mazhar Al Wais said the state would punish those involved 'as a warning to anyone who dares violate innocent lives". A similar case in Maliki last month has not yet been solved. Amal Al Bustani, a doctor living in the area, was killed in her home, along with her housemaid. 'Going into homes and killing their owners and robbing them used to be unheard of in Maliki,' said Ramez Alaas, a contractor who lives in the neighbourhood. Under the former regime, secret police were posted in Maliki because Mr Al Assad lived there, as had his father, Hafez. A commander in the Damascus police force acknowledged that crime 'is a problem' but said authorities planned to install security cameras and had already sent more officers to catch 'everything from traffic violations to public safety threats'. He said the size of the force had been increased, having faced a severe shortfall when the former regime fell and members of its security forces fled. In Aleppo, the country's business capital, the authorities have been installing cameras after a wave of kidnappings in which workers and managers of factories on the edge of the city were held for ransom. Aleppo remains a close-knit society and more criminals appear to be apprehended there than in Damascus, but economic malaise and an influx of migrants from neighbouring Idlib has kept lawlessness rife, according to a textile factory owner in Aleppo. 'It is understandable that it will take time to establish law and order, but people are becoming fed up,' the industrialist said. 'A replica of the old system is developing – gangs close to the regime who are untouchable."
Associated Press
24-07-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Explosion in northern Syria kills at least 6 people and injures dozens
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — At least six people were killed and dozens injured in an explosion in northern Syria's Idlib province, officials said Thursday. There was no official statement on the cause of the blast. The U.K.-based war monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that the explosion took place in an ammunition depot. The Syrian Civil Defense, also known as the White Helmets, reported that at least six people were killed in the blast, which took place in the town of Maarat Misrin north of the city of Idlib on Thursday. 'This is the death toll only of those recovered by Syrian Civil Defense teams, who continue to search for those trapped under the rubble,' the White Helmets said in a statement. Syrian Minister of Emergency and Disaster Management Raed al-Saleh in a post on social media platform X that teams were transporting the wounded and dead despite 'continued recurring explosions in the area, which are hampering response efforts.' The state-run news agency, SANA, reported four people killed and 116 injured, citing health officials, without giving further details. Syria is struggling to recover from a nearly 14-year civil war that ended with the ouster of former President Bashar Assad in a lightning rebel offensive. During the war, which killed nearly half a million people and displaced half the country's pre-war population of of 23 million, Idlib was an opposition-held enclave. The country's current interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa formerly led Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an insurgent group based in Idlib that spearheaded the offensive that unseated Assad.
Al Bawaba
24-07-2025
- Al Bawaba
Explosion rocks Syria's Idlib city
Published July 24th, 2025 - 10:06 GMT ALBAWABA - Syrian News Channel revealed that an explosion rocked the city of Idlib in Syria and the surrounding towns. No official sources have yet commented on the explosion in Idlib city, nor has the reason behind it been shared. Some videos were posted on social media showing a huge cloud rising into the sky, and allegedly said that a massive explosion occurred at an "ammunition warehouse" near Maarat Misrin in the Idlib countryside a short while ago.4 Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that ambulances rushed to the explosion site, amid reports of deaths and injuries, while the reason behind the explosion remains unknown. © 2000 - 2025 Al Bawaba (
Arab News
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Syria identifies 298 suspects in Alawite heartland killings
DAMASCUS: A Syrian committee investigating sectarian violence in the country's Alawite heartland said Tuesday it identified 298 suspects implicated in serious violations that left at least 1,426 Alawites dead in March. The violence unfolded over three days in early March on Syria's predominantly Alawite coast, where government forces and allied groups were accused of carrying out summary executions, mostly targeting Alawite civilians. 'The committee identified 298 individuals by name, who were involved,' spokesman Yasser Al-Farhan told a press conference in Damascus, describing the figure as provisional. He said two lists of suspects had been referred to the judiciary. The committee documented 'serious violations against civilians on March 7, 8 and 9, including murder, premeditated murder, looting, destruction and burning of homes, torture and sectarian insults.' It confirmed the names of 1,426 dead, including 90 women, with most of the rest being civilians from the Alawite community. Authorities have accused gunmen loyal to former president Bashar Assad, an Alawite, of instigating the violence, launching deadly attacks that killed dozens of security forces personnel. Damascus sent military reinforcements to the region after the attacks. The committee said 238 army and security force personnel were killed in the attacks in the provinces of Tartus, Latakia and Hama. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor reported the deaths of more than 1,700 people, mostly Alawite civilians. According to human rights and international organizations, entire families were killed in the violence including women, children, and the elderly. Gunmen stormed homes and asked their residents whether they were Alawite or Sunni before killing or sparing them, they said. Amnesty International has urged Syria to publish the full results of the investigation and ensure those responsible are held accountable. On Sunday, the presidency said Syrian leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa had received the committee's report on July 13, the same day sectarian violence erupted in the Druze heartland of Sweida, killing more than 1,200 people according to the Observatory. The bouts of violence have raised questions over the authorities' ability to manage sectarian tensions and maintain security, more than seven months after Islamists overthrew Assad, who long presented himself as a protector of minorities.
