Syrian President Sharaa calls for unity after deadly clashes
What's the story
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has called for national unity and peace after violent confrontations left more than 1,000 dead. "We must preserve national unity (and) civil peace as much as possible and, God willing, we will be able to live together in this country," Sharaa said from a mosque in Damascus. The clashes, the worst since Bashar al-Assad's ousting in December, erupted on Thursday.
Civilian toll
Alawite civilians among the casualties
The clashes involved new security forces and supporters of the former regime clashing along Syria's Mediterranean coast, a region predominantly populated by members of the Alawite minority to which Assad belonged. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, 745 Alawite civilians have been killed in Latakia and Tartus provinces. Their deaths were termed "executions" by security personnel or pro-government fighters. The violence has also killed 125 security force members and 148 pro-Assad fighters, taking the death toll to 1,018.
Official actions
Government response to the violence
In response to the violence, security forces were sent to Latakia as well as Jableh and Baniyas further south. Defense Ministry spokesperson Hassan Abdul Ghani said the forces had "reimposed control" over areas hit by Assad loyalists' attacks. He warned against any kind of home invasion or assault on residents in their homes, stating that such acts are strictly forbidden.
Appeal for calm
Calls for peace amid rising tension
Sharaa's Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), instrumental in overthrowing Assad, vows to protect Syria's religious and ethnic minorities. But the Alawite heartland is consumed by fear of reprisals for the Assad family's brutal rule. Social media users posted about the killing of Alawite friends and relatives. Leaders of Syria's three main Christian churches and the spiritual leader of Syria's Druze minority also issued statements calling for an end to the violence.