The aftermath of fierce clashes and widespread destruction is becoming increasingly evident as life slowly resumes in cities along Syria’s western coast, where violence driven by armed groups loyal to the former regime has left hundreds dead and devastated communities.
In Jableh, a coastal city 25 kilometres (15.5 miles) south of Latakia, streets are lined with burned civilian cars, looted shops, and emptied food warehouses.
The city, which witnessed some of the fiercest fighting, was besieged for two days by armed remnants of the former regime before security forces intervened to break the blockade.
Residents are now grappling with severe shortages of essentials. In front of a bakery in central Jableh, hundreds of residents queued for bread, which they had been unable to access for three days. Power and water supplies remain cut off, and no signs of humanitarian aid have reached the city.
On the outskirts of Jableh, in the Rmaila neighbourhood – a mixed Sunni and Alawite area that faced intense clashes – homes have been burned and the bodies of suspected fighters from the former regime remain covered by blankets on the roadside. Damage from the latest fighting is evident across the district.
North of Jableh, Russia’s Hmeimim military base has turned into a refuge for hundreds of civilians who fled their homes in response to the escalating violence.
Further north, at the entrance to Latakia, security forces have established new military checkpoints amid ongoing concerns of renewed violence.
Intermittent gunfire and the sound of tanks advancing toward Latakia’s countryside can still be heard. Syria’s defence ministry had announced the start of the second phase of military operations aimed at pursuing pro-regime fighters who had fled to rural areas.
The violence began after the pro-Assad fighters coordinated attacks on security forces on Thursday. The attacks spiralled into revenge killings as thousands of armed supporters of Syria’s new leadership went to the coastal areas to support the security forces.
A security source in Latakia told The New Arab‘s Arabic language edition Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that more than 200 Syrian army soldiers and public security personnel had since been killed.
The source, who requested anonymity, said reinforcements had been deployed to secure the region, with new checkpoints installed to curb the movement of armed groups that had arrived from other provinces without coordination with the defence ministry.
Civilian casualties mount
Reports of sectarian killings have raised fears of escalating violence. According to the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR), 642 people have died since the violence began on 6 March. Of those killed, 315 were targeted by pro-regime remnants, including 167 security personnel and 148 civilians. Meanwhile, government forces and allied militias reportedly killed 327 people, including disarmed fighters and civilians.
Fadel Abdulghany, the network’s director, described the scale of civilian casualties as “staggering”, adding that the true death toll may be far higher as access to affected areas improves.
“We documented vehicles targeted simply for having Idlib license plates,” Abdul Ghani told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed. “Saturday marked the deadliest day so far, with numerous civilians killed in coordinated attacks.”
Among those caught in the violence was Alaa Naanou, a displaced man returning to Jableh who narrowly escaped gunfire targeting his vehicle.
Others were less fortunate. A local family was reportedly killed by pro-regime fighters during the same incident.
In Baniyas, residents described how Syrian army-affiliated gunmen opened fire indiscriminately in the Al-Qusour neighbourhood, killing civilians, including women and children.
Marah Haddad, a local resident, told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that residents fled en masse toward Tartous in fear of further attacks. “Those killed had no connection to the former regime’s remnants or armed groups,” she said.
Omar Hudhaifa, a prominent figure in Baniyas and a member of the Syrian Islamic Council, confirmed that violations took place in Al-Qusour. He attributed the violence to undisciplined armed groups acting independently, stressing that their actions were not coordinated with Syria’s defence ministry.
Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa announced on Sunday the launch of an investigation into the violence, adding that the country was confronting attempts to drag it into a civil war.
The Syrian presidency earlier announced that an “independent committee” was formed to “investigate the violations against civilians and identify those responsible for them”, adding that the perpetrators would be referred to court.
