The new leader in Syria promises investigations on the mass killing of Alawite civilians. Who are they?

While Syria is witnessing “one of the biggest massacres” since Bashar al-Assad’s fall, his new leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa promised to hunt the Assad loyalists and promised an investigation into the mass murder of Alawites following the international reaction.

According to the Syrian observer for human rights (SOHR), 973 civilians have been killed from Monday (March 10) in “killing, field executions and ethnic cleaning operations” by security personnel or pro-government fighters on the western coast of the Alawite minority community.

The previous death fees specified 830 Alawites “executions”, from which Assad, in Latakia and Tartus in the Mediterranean Coast Region belonged.

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In a video posted by the State News Agency, the interim president of Syria, Ahmed Al-Sharaa, said: “We will respond, firmly and without leniency, anyone who has been involved in the blood of the civilians … or that exceeded the powers of the state.”

Earlier, the president announced on Telegram that an “independent committee” had been formed to “investigate violations against civilians and to identify those responsible for them.”

The United Nations, the Arab League, the United States, the United Kingdom and other governments have condemned violence.

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Who are Alawite?

Alawites are a minority sect and Shia from Sunnita-Majority country in Syria. They constitute only about 10-13 percent of the population of Syria of 23 million and have been a dominant community under the Assad regime, since the nation obtained independence from France in 1946.

Hafez Al-Assad in the Alawite community became president following a military coup in 1970. After his death in 2000, his son Bashar al-Assad took over Syria, becoming president under an authoritarian rule.

However, the long rule of the Assad family ended on December 8, 2025, when the rebel forces confiscated the capital Damascus and overturned Bashar al-Assad, ending the rule of his 54-year-old family.

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Why are they killed?

While Alawites benefited from the Assad family, becoming synonymous with the power in the country where they were minorities, the removal of the former president led to the loss of their influence.

According to information, armed Sunnite factions, which are loyal to the new government, have launched operations to kill revenge against Assad’s minority community. This escalation threatened the control of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Sunnita faction that caused the rebels to remove Assad from power.

The conflict began when the government forces in Syria tried to hold a suspect near Jableh on Thursday (March 6). However, they were ambushed by armed ASSAD supporters. Security forces then launched crackdown in Alawite fortresses along the Mediterranean coast.

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While the authorities claimed that the remains of Assad’s forces were targeted, but they acknowledged that the “individual actions” contributed to the killing of civilians.

(With inputs from agencies)