Violence in Syria after clashes between Assad loyalist and the Syrian government sparked a weekend of civil instability

Relatives and neighbours attend the funeral procession for four Syrian security force members killed in clashes with loyalists of ousted President Bashar Assad in coastal Syria, in the village of Al-Janoudiya, west of Idlib, Saturday, March 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)

The fall of former President Bashar al-Assad in Dec. 2024 was met with excitement, as Syrians saw the prospects of a new era of peace and regional stability. For 13 years, civil conflict carried on and displaced millions of Syrians from their homes either internally, away from the battles, or externally, including in places such as Jordan, Lebanon, Iran, the UK and Germany. After the president was overthrown by the former Al Qaeda affiliate, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), and supporting rebels, many displaced Syrians were able to return back to the country. In Jan. 2025, Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa, leader of HTS, was declared interim president.

Despite the initially positive response, Sharaa has faced numerous challenges in uniting Syria. On March 6,  an attack by Assad loyalists on security control at checkpoints in Jableh was the first event in what has become a sharp escalation in violence in Syria. What the regional security chief described as a well planned attack resulted in the death of 147 people, including seven civilians. 

Assad loyalists are mainly Alawites, an ethno-religious group that held security and bureaucratic positions under the Assad administration. After the transition of power, Sharaa aimed to reform the government through mass removals of high-ranking government officials, but Alawite activists spoke out against being subjected to violence since the fall of Assad, especially in rural Homs and Latakia. Despite declaring a desire for unity among all ethnic and religious groups, Sharaa has not invited Alawite leaders to meetings, while holding meetings with other groups, such as Kurds, Christians and Druze.

After the ambush attacks, gunmen loyal to the current regime stormed the coastal cities of Sheer, Mukhtariyeh and Haffah, killing an estimated 69 men. Beirut-based Al-Mayadeen reported that more than 30 were killed in Mukhtariyeh alone, though Syrian authorities did not publish an official death toll. Numerous gunmen have gone to coastal cities in the time following in efforts of carrying out revenge attacks. 

Since the initial attacks, violence has surged near and inside Assad stronghold cities, such as Tartus and Latakia. Reports allege upwards of 1,300 people have been killed, at least 830 of those being civilians, though it is unclear which side executed the civilian murders. 

Many of the victims of the widespread murders appear to be members of the Alawite community, which has left their society in a “state of horror,” according to a Syrian activist featured on the BBC. He went on to describe how the Alawite community does not have a government or state that is ready to help, and as a result of the violence, the province has seen widespread power outages resulting in households being without electricity and pumped water. A curfew has been established in the cities of Homs, Latakia and Tartous, where the violence started, and the governor of Latakia stated that the power of the province had been cut. The imposed curfew makes addressing the resulting infrastructure problems more difficult, as aid workers are advised to stay indoors after curfew. In addition, Syrian forces are facing accusations of systematically killing members of the Alawite community. As a result of these events, Sharaa’s promise of bringing unity to the region is yet to be realized.