Clashes between the security forces of the new government and supporters of ousted President Bashar al-Assad have erupted in the Syrian province of Latakia on Friday.
Assad’s regime fell in December 2024, following an offensive by opposition groups, which include both radical Islamists and moderate factions. He fled to Moscow, where he was granted asylum. The new government was led by members of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.
According to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), fierce clashes between the two sides began after the arrival of large military reinforcements from Idlib in preparation for the start of a large-scale security operation in and around the city of Latakia.
The Syrian authorities sent additional forces to Latakia as well as to Tartus, where the Russian Navy’s logistics centre in the Mediterranean Sea is located.
The fighting in Latakia has killed at least 48 people, including 16 members of the Syrian security forces and four civilians. In total, some 70 people, including 35 members of the defence and interior ministries, were killed in clashes in several localities, SOHR says, with dozens more injured.
A 24-hour curfew was imposed in the provinces of Latakia, Tartous and Homs due to the military operation. SOHR head Rami Abdurrahman said the clashes in Latakia were the worst since the fall of the Assad regime. According to the centre, supporters of the former president control the town of Qardaha in Latakia, the hometown of Bashar al-Assad’s father, as well as a number of other settlements.
