In the western region of Syria, a deadly attack took place overnight, claiming the lives of at least 14 members of the security forces. According to the new Interior Ministry, it was an ambush organized by the former forces of the ousted leader Bashar al-Assad. The attack took place in the countryside of the Tartus region and also wounded 10 officers. It took place a few hours after the military operations command of the new government announced that its forces had eliminated a surrounded group of remnants of the old regime in the same area.
The new government responded quickly by setting an ultimatum for the former regime forces and armed groups to hand over their weapons, less than three weeks after Assad fled the country as the rebels advanced on the capital Damascus.
The Syrian military operations command said it was deploying additional forces “to restore security and hold accountable the remnants of the former regime that seek to destabilize security and terrorize the people of some areas of the Syrian coast.”
The director of public security in Latakia, a governorate in the country’s western Mediterranean coast, told the official SANA news agency: “We will not tolerate any criminal gang that seeks to compromise the security and safety of our people.”
Images from Agence France-Presse showed former Assad regime security forces handing over their weapons to the rebel-linked transitional government in Latakia. Syrian state media reported that other cities in Syria, such as Daraa, have set up similar programs to return weapons.
The new authorities have also issued temporary cards to former regime forces to allow them to move freely within Syria while their “judicial procedures are finalized,” according to a notice posted outside the government office, as seen in the AFP video.
The Assad regime and the Syrian forces that served his government are responsible for numerous atrocities committed during the crackdown on political dissent, including torture and mistreatment of prisoners. According to the latest United Nations estimate, more than 306,000 civilians have been killed in Syria between the start of the civil war in 2011 and March 2021.
Videos circulating on local social media showed protests taking place in Latakia governorate. CNN cannot independently verify these videos.
The protests took place at the same time as a video circulating on social media purporting to show the desecration of a site in Aleppo claimed by part of the Alawite community as a sanctuary..
The new Interior Ministry acknowledged the incident in a statement, but said it happened a few weeks ago and the perpetrators are unknown.
Syria’s Alawite community, which lives mainly in coastal areas, was propelled to key political, social and military positions during the rule of Assad, and his father and predecessor Hafez.
The video shows a fire ravaging the interior of the shrine while four corpses lie outside surrounded by several armed militants.
“We confirm that the video in circulation is an old video from the period of the liberation of the city of Aleppo, made by unknown groups, and that our agencies are working day and night to preserve religious properties and sites,” the Interior Ministry said.
“The aim of reposting these clips is to sow discord among the Syrian people at this sensitive juncture.”