Syrians describe horror as an Alawian family who died in their home

Syria’s interim leaders called for solidarity as violence and revenge killings continued on Sunday loyal to former leader Bashar al-Assad, who was loyal to formerly ousted.

Hundreds of people reportedly fled the coastal province of Latakia and Taltas – the strongholds supported by Assad.

Local residents described scenes of robbery and mass killing, including children.

In a major neighborhood in the coastal city, residents said the streets were filled with scattered bodies and filled with blood. Witnesses said people of different ages were shot.

People were so scared that they even looked through the windows on Friday. Internet connections are unstable, but when connected, they learn from the death of their neighbors from Facebook posts.

A man, Eyman, told the BBC that he was recently imprisoned and saved. He posted a video on his Facebook account in August 2023 criticizing Bashar al-Assad’s corruption rules. He was arrested soon after, until the release of prisoners as Islamist-led troops after the fall of Assad last December.

He was recognized by combatants raiding the streets of Hai al Kusour, so he survived death but did not rob. They picked up his car and continued to raid other houses.

Mr Fares told me over the phone: “They are strangers and I cannot identify their identity or language, but they appear to be Uzbek or Chechnya.”

He added: “There are also some Syrians, but there is no official security. Some civilians are also those who commit the murder.”

Mr Fares said he saw his family killed in his home, with women and children filled with blood. Some families ran to their roof to hide, but were not spared from bleeding. “This is terrible,” he said.

The UK-based Syrian Human Rights Observatory has recorded more than 740 civilians killed in coastal cities of Latakia, Japur and Benias. Another 300 security forces and remnants were reportedly killed in the conflict.

The BBC cannot independently verify the death toll.

Mr Fares said things were stable when Syrian troops and security forces arrived in Benia. He said they drove other factions out of the city and provided a corridor for families to enter safe areas.

Ali, another resident of Banias, confirmed Mr. Fares’ account, who asked us not to use his full name. Ali, who lives in Kusur with his wife and 14-year-old daughter, fled his home with the assistance of security forces.

“They came to our building. We were so scared that we were just listening to the fires and screams of people nearby. When we managed to make connections, we learned about death from sporadic Facebook posts. But when they came to our building, we thought we were done.”

“They were in the money. They knocked on our neighbor’s door, took his car, his money and all the gold or valuables he had at home. But he wasn’t killed.”

Ali and his family were taken over by his Sunni neighbors, who followed another branch of Islam and are now with them. He told me: “We have lived together for many years, Alawites, Sunnis and Christians. We have never experienced it.”

“The Sunnis are rushing to protect the Alawites from the killings that occurred, and now the official forces are restoring order in the town.”

Ali said the family was taken to a school that was primarily Sunni communities where they would be protected until the killing of the faction members were expelled from Benias.

The violence began on Thursday as Assad loyalists (refusing to give up their weapons) ambushed security forces around the coastal cities of Latakya and Japur, resulting in dozens of people.

Ghiath Dallah, former principal of the Assad army, announced a new rebellion against the current government, saying he was establishing a “military commission to liberate Syria.”

Some reports suggest that former security officials of the Assad regime refused to give up their weapons and were forming a resistance group in the mountains.

Mr Fares said most of the Alavian community rejected them and accused Dara and other Hardline Assad loyalists of violence.

“They benefit from the bloodshed that is happening. What we need now is official security to gain the upper hand and prosecute faction killers of mass killings to restore security,” he said.

But others have also blamed interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, who said he removed Syria’s security, army and police agencies and had no clear strategy to deal with thousands of officials and personnel.

Some of them, especially among the police, have nothing to do with the killings during the Assad regime. The new authorities also dismissed the work of thousands of public officials.

90% of Syria’s population lives below the poverty line and thousands have no income, which is a fertile ground for rebellion.

Syria has differences over what is happening. The wider community condemns the killing of any civilians, and demonstrations organized in Damascus are intended to mourn death and condemn violence.

But in the past two days, different regions in Syria have also called for “jihad”. Banias residents said along with the faction, some civilians were killed in armed forces.

Over the past 13 years, Syria’s majority Sunnis have faced atrocities at the hands of the Assad regime’s forces. This contributing sectarian hatred is primarily a hatred for the Alaveite minority where community members are affiliated with war crimes.

According to human rights groups, there is evidence that during the Assad regime, Alavet security personnel were involved in the killing and torture of thousands of Syrians, most of whom were Sunni Muslims.

Members of those killed military and security forces are mainly from the Sunni community, and now some in the Sunni community call for revenge, but the president calls for peace.

Sharaa’s Islamic power overthrew Assad three months ago and now must balance providing security for all and seek justice for the crimes of the Assad regime and its accompanying men.

Although he has power over some of the troops that helped him in power, some factions are clearly out of control. These factions also include foreign combatants with radical Islamic agendas.

To lead Syria into a security and democratic future, many believe that salad needs to end the existence of any foreign combatant and provide a constitution that protects the rights of all Syrians, regardless of their background or religion.

While he is believed to be moving towards a legal framework for this constitution, controlling violent factions and expelling foreign combatants will be a major challenge.