Protests erupted in Syria on Wednesday when a video of an attack on the Alawite shrine surfaced, with one demonstrator killed near Homs, according to a war monitor. In an unconnected event in Tartus province, a stronghold of deposed president Bashar Al Assad’s Alawite minority, the Syrian Observatory for human rights reported fatal fighting over the attempted arrest of a former official.
What Happened?
According to the observatory, 14 Syrian security officers and 3 armed men were killed in confrontations in Tartus province when forces attempted to apprehend an Assad-era officer affiliated with the notorious Sadanaya jail.
According to the Britain-based observatory, one demonstrator was killed and 5 others injured. “After security forces… opened fire to disperse” the throng. The observatory recorded thousands of demonstrators in the coastal sites of Tartas and Latakia. Both of which are Alawite strongholds, as well as other regions including Assad’s hometown Qardaha
Witnesses told AFP that rallies adapted in Tartus, Latakia, and adjacent Jableh. With some placing the number of protesters in the thousands. The rallies are the largest by Alawites since Assad’s ouster earlier this month. They come a day after hundreds of Syrians demonstrated in Damascus against the torching of a Christmas tree.
‘Yes to a Free Syria’
However, The Ministry of Interior stated on its official telegram account that the footage data back to the Rebel onslaught on Aleppo in late November. And that the brutality was carried out by unidentified parties. The ministry also stated that some former resign members attacked interior ministry forces in Syria’s coastal districts on Wednesday, killing and wounding several people.
According to protester Ali Daoud, many attended the March in Jableh. “We are calling for those who attacked the shrine to be held to account.” Images showed a massive gathering walking through the streets waving the three stars independence era Rebel banner. “No to burning sacred sites and religious intolerance. No to sectarianism.” One protest banner read: “Yes to a free Syria.”
Alawites are concerned about a reaction against their community. Both as a religious minority and because of its long relationship with al-Assad’s family. The countries’ new leaders have frequently promised to protect minorities. Religious groups are concerned that the former rebels now in power may seek to impose a conservative style of government.
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