Syrian security forces accused of killing hundreds of civilians
According to a war monitoring group, Syrian security forces have allegedly killed hundreds of civilians belonging to the Alavian minority, continuing violence along the country’s coast.
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said about 745 civilians were killed in about 30 “Holocaust” targets on Friday and Saturday.
BBC News cannot independently verify these claims.
Hundreds of people reportedly fled their homes in the area – the heart of the ousted President Bashar al-Assad, who also belonged to the Alawi sect.
Sohr said that over the past two days, more than 1,000 people have been killed in total, the worst violence in Syria since the rebels overthrew the Assad regime in December.
That number includes dozens of government forces and gunmen loyal to Assad, who have been trapped in conflicts between coastal Latakia and the tough province since Thursday.
According to the SOHR report, about 125 government security forces led by Islamists and 148 pro-Assad combatants were killed in the violence.
A spokesman for the Syrian Ministry of Defense told the country’s Sanaa News Agency that the government reestablished control after a “dangerous attack” on its security personnel.
Violence puts the Alawite community in a state of terror, a city’s activist Tell the BBC on Fridayhundreds of people reportedly fled the affected areas.
According to Reuters, a large crowd seeks asylum at a Russian military base in Hmeimim, Latakia.
Videotapes shared by Reuters show dozens of people chanting “people want Russian protection” outside the base.
Meanwhile, according to local media reports, dozens of families fled to neighboring Lebanon.
Geir Pedersen, the UN’s special envoy to Syria, said he was “deeply shocked” by the “very disturbing report of civilian casualties” along the coast of Syria.
He called on all parties to avoid actions that could allow the country to “destroy” the country and endanger a “reliable and inclusive political transition.”
The Alawian sect is a branch of Shia Islam, accounting for about 10% of Syria’s population, which is the majority of Sunni Muslims.
