ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Syria’s defense ministry said on Monday its forces have pushed “remnants of the former regime” away from the center of the coastal Latakia and Tartous provinces and claimed victory in their military operation despite mass killings sparking widespread condemnation.
“Our forces were able to neutralize the security cells and remnants of the defunct regime from the town of al-Mukhtariyya, the town of al-Muzayri’a, the al-Zobar area and others in Latakia Governorate, and the town of al-Daliyah, the town of Tanita and al-Qadmus in Tartous Governorate, which resulted in thwarting the threats and securing the area,” ministry spokesperson Hassan Abdulghani said on X.
Syrian forces “absorbed the attacks” of Bashar al-Assad loyalists and “neutralized their element of surprise,” he added, announcing that public institutions can now resume work.
Violence erupted in Alawite-majority areas on Syria’s Mediterranean coast on Thursday when armed groups, many loyal to ousted president Assad, launched attacks. Damascus responded with heavy force, cracking down on the largest challenge to their newly established rule.
According to Abdulghani, remnants of Assad’s regime were pushed away from key centers, and the roads they used have been secured.
Amid the escalation of violence, Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Sunday ordered the establishment of an "independent national committee" to "investigate and look into” the deadly clashes in western Syria. Sharaa also vowed to form another high-level committee to "preserve civil peace" and "listen" to the people of the coastal areas in the west after days of deadly violence in the region.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor, on Monday reported that around 1,500 people - mostly civilians - have been killed in western Syria since the violence erupted on Thursday.
At least 973 civilians, mostly from the Alawite community to which Assad belongs, are among the death toll, according to the Observatory. Most were killed by government and government-affiliated forces.
The violence has additionally drawn widespread condemnation from the European Union and the United Nations, France, Germany, the US, Iraq, and Iran. For their part, Saudi Arabia and Turkey have expressed support for Syria’s new authorities amid the unrest.
The new authorities in Damascus have come under repeated criticism for their treatment of minority groups. After his appointment as Syria’s interim President in late January, Sharaa said he would respect the rights of all ethnic and religious groups.
