Syrian security forces fought for a second day on Friday to suppress an emerging insurgency by pro-Assad militias, with reports of heavy casualties as the interim government faced its most significant challenge yet.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that more than 130 people had been killed in two days of violence in the coastal region of western Syria, which is heavily populated by the members of the Alawite minority.
They included at least two dozen male residents of the Alawite town of al-Mukhtareyah killed by gunmen on Friday, the Observatory and two Alawite activists said, citing contacts in the region and video footage from the scene.
Syrian authorities said the violence began when fighters loyal to ousted dictator Bashar Assad launched a deadly and well-planned attack on their forces on Thursday.
The violence has shaken interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa's efforts to consolidate control as his administration struggles to get U.S. sanctions lifted and grapples with wider security challenges, notably in the southwest, where Israel has said it will prevent Damascus from deploying forces.
Syrians took to the streets to rally in support of the government in Damascus and other cities, while Saudi Arabia and Türkiye, both allies of the government, also signaled their backing.
Russia, which was a major backer of Assad but has sought to build ties with the new government, said it was alarmed by a deterioration in the security situation and called on all "respected" leaders of the country to stop the bloodshed.
Images from Al Mukhtareyah showed at least 20 men lying in close proximity – some bloodied – by the side of a road in the town center. Reuters was able to verify the location in the video, but not when it was filmed or by whom.
A government spokesperson and two officials linked to the ruling authority did not respond to requests for comment.
Syrian state news agency SANA, citing a security source, said "individual violations" had been perpetrated after unorganized crowds had headed to the coastal region following the attacks on government security personnel.
"We are working to stop these violations," the source said.
The violence spiraled on Thursday when the authorities said groups of Assad-aligned militias targeted security patrols and checkpoints in the Jableh area and surrounding countryside, before spreading more widely.
Curfews were declared on Friday in the coastal cities of Tartous and Latakia, SANA said. Security forces mounted combing operations in both cities and nearby mountains.
The Assad regime recruited heavily from the Alawite community for the security apparatus and bureaucracy of the Syrian state.
While al-Sharaa has brought much of Sunni Muslim majority Syria under the sway of Damascus, important areas remain outside its grasp, including the northeast and east which are controlled by the PKK's Syrian offshoot YPG terrorists.
"The chaos and paroxysm of killings will undermine the confidence of both foreign states and Syrians in his government and its ability to steer Syria out of this difficult phase," said Joshua Landis, head of the Center for Middle East Studies at the University of Oklahoma.
Saudi Arabia condemned "crimes being undertaken by outlaw groups" in Syria and their targeting of security forces.
Türkiye, a close ally of Syria's new government, also stated its support for Damascus, saying "the tension in and around Latakia, as well as the targeting of security forces, could undermine the efforts to lead Syria into the future in unity and solidarity."
