โWe are very scared,โ he said in Arabic. The man, an Alawite Muslim in his 30s, hides somewhere in Syriaโs coastal Tartus province. He refuses to disclose his location or family detailsโa prudent caution in a region where belonging to the wrong sect has become a death sentence.
In the first ten days of March 2025, the world largely looked away as Hayโat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) terrorists executed what appears to be a systematic campaign of sectarian cleansing along Syriaโs Mediterranean coast, in the provinces of Latakia and Tartus. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reports that approximately 1,476 civilians, predominantly Alawites and Christians, were massacred between March 6th and March 10th.
โThere is an ethnic cleansing going on, and we are not safe at all,โ the man tells East Post, adding โLasna biโaman akhiโ (Weโre not safe, brother). His fears persist despite public assurances from HTS leader Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaaโbetter known as Abu Mohammad al-Julaniโthat perpetrators will face justice.
Despite Mr Julaniโs assurances, HTS terror forces continue the massacres even up to Saturday, March 15th.ย
On Saturday, HTS-affiliated terrorists reportedly killed 19 people in Arza village in Hama province. On Friday, March 14th, an explosion in an apartment in the Raml neighbourhood of southern Latakia killed four and injured over 13.ย
Turkey, accused of aiding the HTS, has bombed Sarrin while Mr Julani met Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Defence Minister Yaลar Gรผler, and Intelligence Chief Ibrahim Kalin in Damascus on Saturday.
โSomething is lost, and something is not possibleโ
The horror of the attacks on Alawites and Christians in Syriaโs Latakia and Tartus emerges in fragments through social media. One account, shared by journalist Khlood Ayoush on Facebook, captures the desperate flight of civilians:
โThey attacked us from three sidesโฆ And what remains in front of us except the seaโฆThe pine is lost like a small buildingโฆ Itโs the western border to the sea rightโฆThe time they attackedโฆ The world started fleeing in the direction of the seaโฆ Or the position of Sheikh Aliโฆโ
The narrative continues: โTo reach the sea, you have to walk a distance in the sand, and stumbling on the sand is tiring and difficult. I said women and children run away, and something hides between reeds, something in watering holes, something is lost, and something is not possibleโฆThe situation is like you are a stagnant deer followed by a herd of predators.โ
Most chilling is the description of executions: โThe corpses have played with the world, fire, smoke, horror, screaming and cryingโฆ And you see how the world falls beside you alone, and then you see you and say itโs your turn by shooting him on the head.โ
This account aligns with video evidence circulating on social media showing HTS terrorists shooting Alawite children, men and women indiscriminately.
Other footage reveals HTS commanders instructing their forces to carry out the genocide of Alawites โwithout making any noise.โ
Nowhere to run for Alawite Muslims in Syria
The coastal provinces of Latakia and Tartus, traditional strongholds of Syriaโs Alawite minority, have become killing grounds.
According to Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, over 9,000 Alawite Muslims and Christians fleeing the violence have sought sanctuary at Russiaโs Hmeimim Air Base in Latakia.
Iranian media outlets report that many Shiites and Christians have undertaken perilous journeys to reach Lebanon, a land that continues to face attacks from Israel, violating a fragile ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah.
For those unable to escape, the situation grows increasingly desperate. On March 14th, SOHR reported that Mr Julaniโs loyalists had set a series of fires in the countryside of Latakia, burning forests, farmlands and properties. These fires, centred in the area of al-Qardaha, โthreaten the lives of civilians who fled their homes to forested areas to escape the systematic killings,โ according to the monitoring group.
The irony is bitter as Mr Julani publicly blames โremnants of the old regimeโ for the violence, his forces appear to be methodically eliminating escape routes for those seeking to avoid the slaughter.
The politics of silence
The international response to the crisis has been instructive in its asymmetry. The governments that once vocally backed the overthrow of Dr Bashar al-Assadโs regime have maintained a conspicuous silence on the plight of Alawites and Christians.ย
Both the European Union and the United States have strongly supported Mr Julani during these clashes, echoing Damascusโs official position that forces loyal to the exiled Dr Assad bear responsibility for the bloodshed. The Arab countries, which had earlier funded the terrorists to topple Dr Assad, have also voiced their support in favour of the HTS.
This narrative, of blaming Dr Assad for the crisis in Syria, persists despite mounting evidence of sectarian targeting by HTS, an organisation previously affiliated with al-Qaeda before rebranding itself as a โmoderate rebelโ group.
In a macabre display of political theatre, Mr Julani has forced some Alawites and Christians to participate in rallies supporting his regime in Latakia and Tartus.ย
Several high-ranking Christian clerics from the Syrian Orthodox Church in Damascus have met with Mr Julani and pledged their support, even as their communities endure violence in western Syria.
Desperate appeals to unlikely saviours
Desperation has driven some to unexpected quarters. A group calling itself the Alawite Muslim Defence League has launched a social media campaign appealing to countries such as India and Israelโboth American alliesโto intervene militarily.
The group claims on X (formerly Twitter) that Syriaโs Alawite community has been compelled to seek support from Israel due to the betrayal by Dr Assadโs allies like Iran, Palestinians and Russians.
The appeal to Israel appears especially misguided. The fall of Dr Assadโs government, which had maintained alliances with Iran and Lebanonโs Hezbollah, has already benefited Israel strategically, allowing it to annex the entire Golan Heights and other parts of Syria without resistance from Mr Julaniโs new regime. Given Israelโs historical support for forces opposing the Syrian Arab Army, intervention on behalf of Alawites seems improbable.
Indeed, even as these pleas circulate, Israel has conducted massive strikes in Damascusโterritory nominally under Mr Julaniโs controlโtargeting Palestinian resistance offices in the Syrian capital.
A prophecy fulfilled
Ten days after the initial HTS assault on Syriaโs Alawite and Christian communities, the provinces of Latakia and Tartus remain unstable. Bodies lie scattered across formerly peaceful neighbourhoods. The 9,000 refugees at Russiaโs air base refuse to return home, their fear deeper than their desire to reclaim their former lives.
In this bleak landscape, Mr Julaniโs vision for a โnew Syriaโ appears to confirm the very predictions Dr Assad made about the rise of extremist forces in the country. The man who once fought under al-Qaedaโs banner now presides over territory where sectarian violence flourishes while publicly disavowing responsibility.
โWeโre not safe, brother,โ the Alawite man repeats before ending our conversation, his words hanging in the air like the smoke from burning pine forestsโa communityโs heritage reduced to ashes along Syriaโs once-idyllic coast.
East Post is an independent geopolitical analysis portal covering South Asia and global power dynamics for international audiences. Views expressed are analytical and do not constitute endorsement of any state or non-state actor.
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