Violence has reached horrific proportions in Syria’s coastal towns of Latakia and Tartus, where armed groups claiming allegiance to the current interim government are executing civilians in door-to-door killings, according to eyewitness accounts.
Entire neighbourhoods have been decimated, with bodies abandoned in open fields as terrified survivors flee for their lives, reports The Guardian.
A woman from Latakia, speaking on condition of anonymity, described the chaos unfolding in Bostan al-Basha, a village near Tartus.
"My friend’s fiancée was shot. They didn’t allow anyone to help her, and she bled to death. She hasn’t even been buried yet," she said, her voice trembling.
The assailants, who claim to be fighters of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), have been raiding homes and executing residents en masse.
"My aunt lives in Bostan al-Basha. All her neighbours have been slaughtered," recounted another witness. The same gunmen ransacked her own home, seizing at least 20 vehicles from the neighbourhood.
Despite their claims of affiliation with HTS, the witness dismissed them as mere "terrorists" indiscriminately targeting civilians.
"Anyone attempting to flee, anyone they suspect, is killed on the spot," she added grimly.
As the violence spirals, remnants of Bashar al-Assad’s loyalist forces have retaliated with guerrilla-style attacks on interim government security personnel.
In response, state security forces—backed by pro-government militias—have launched sweeping counter-offensives, reportedly resorting to "retaliatory massacres".
According to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), more than 1,000 people have been killed in Syria’s coastal region over just two days.
This includes at least 745 civilians, many from the Alawite sect, as well as 148 pro-Assad fighters and 125 government security personnel.
The Alawites, a Shia subsect, have historically been concentrated in northwest Syria, where they have been subject to violent reprisals since Assad’s ousting in December last year.
Despite the regime’s collapse, much of the community has no direct ties to the former ruling family.
Yet, they continue to face targeted killings as sectarian tensions deepen.
Some civilians have managed to flee towards Russia’s Hmeimim Air Base in Latakia, seeking refuge.
However, en route, many encountered militant checkpoints, where they were first interrogated about their religious affiliation.
"At the checkpoints, the first question they asked was whether they were Alawite," recalled one survivor.
Elsewhere, residents described horrifying massacres. A woman now residing in Germany, whose family remains in Baniyas, recounted the carnage in her hometown: "They killed my aunt’s friend inside her home. Her name was Zeina. Our two family houses were burned down, but by God’s mercy, everyone managed to hide and survive."
In Fars Kabih, a village in Baniyas, armed groups reportedly targeted specific households.
One survivor described a horrific scene: "They shot a woman in the leg and then killed her brother and husband. To this day, their bodies remain unburied."
The worsening situation has drawn strong international condemnation.
Saudi Arabia has denounced the massacres as ‘criminal acts perpetrated by illegal factions’, reaffirming its support for Syria’s interim government.
Meanwhile, UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen urged all factions to exercise restraint and adhere to international humanitarian law.
The Syrian defence ministry reported that clashes continue in remote areas of Tartus, including the village of Betanita, while sporadic attacks persist across multiple provinces.
Reports also suggest that pro-Assad fighters have sabotaged infrastructure, cutting electricity and telecommunications between Daraa and Damascus as part of their ‘hit-and-run’ strategy.
With no sign of de-escalation, the conflict has entered its fourth day, plunging Syria further into bloodshed and instability.
In a rare address from Damascus, interim President Ahmed al-Shara called for unity, urging Syrians to "protect national peace and harmony".
However, with mass graves filling and violence unchecked, peace remains a distant prospect.
