For two days, Rihab Kamel and her family hid terrified in their bathroom in the city of Baniyas as armed men stormed the neighbourhood, pursuing members of Syria’s Alawite minority. The coastal city is part of Syria’s Alawite heartland that has been gripped by the fiercest violence since former president Bashar al-Assad was toppled in December.

Armed Sunni groups, considered loyal to the new regime after Assad’s removal, have begun retaliatory killings against Alawites, deepening Syria’s sectarian divide. This challenges the power of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which played a significant role in removing Assad from power.

Once empowered by the regime, many Alawites now face reprisals from rebel factions and displaced Sunni populations who suffered under Assad's rule.

Syria: Clashes between new security forces and Assad loyalists erupted on Thursday in the Alawite heartland, escalating into reported mass killings.

An ambush on a Syrian security patrol near Latakia by pro-Assad gunmen has ignited days of clashes, leading to over 1,000 deaths and deepening sectari

More than 1,300 dead in a few days - US condemns "Islamist terrorists & foreign jihadists who murder civilians" - Turkey supports the jihadists - Washington & Moscow call for a Security Council meetin

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says 162 civilians were "executed" in a coastal region linked to ousted president Bashar al-Assad.

The killing of at least 745 civilians in massacres targeting the Alawite minority in Syria exposes the criminality of NATO powers that support and legitimize the Islamist HTS regime.

The violence broke out on Thursday, three months after the insurgent-led government seized power, bringing an end to Assad’s reign. The casualties included 745 civilians, 125 members of the Syrian security forces and 148 fighters loyal to Assad.