Mass Killings In Syrian Alawite Village Spark Fears Of Sectarian Violence

 

A mother and daughter huddled in their attic, barely breathing as armed men gathered outside. They had hoped to stay unnoticed, but panic was evident in the video they secretly recorded.

Earlier that day, on March 7, the head of the Khalil family reassured his relatives they were safe. The newly empowered Islamist forces sweeping through their village, al-Sanobar, were targeting only those affiliated with the recently ousted leader Bashar al-Assad, he reasoned. Hours later, he and his son lay dead on their patio.

A masked fighter later filmed himself inside their ransacked home, chanting about "ethnic cleansing," and shared the footage online. Family members hiding upstairs recalled hearing the raid unfold, including the executions.

A Brutal Purge in Alawite Communities

The killings in al-Sanobar were part of a larger wave of sectarian violence targeting Alawite communities along Syria’s coast. Alawites, a sect of Shia Islam, were a pillar of Assad’s regime, which ruled for over 50 years until its downfall. The attacks raise questions about whether interim president Ahmad al-Sharaa can fulfill his promise to govern inclusively and prevent sectarian reprisals.

The latest bloodshed began after pro-Assad forces launched a deadly ambush on government troops on March 6. It was the deadliest incident since Assad’s ouster in December, triggering a swift and brutal retaliation in Latakia and Tartus provinces. The new government claimed the mass killings were the work of rogue factions and vowed to hold perpetrators accountable.

Targeted Executions and Mass Graves

Survivors described armed militants storming their homes, looting, and executing men in broad daylight. In al-Sanobar alone, at least 84 bodies were recorded in verified footage, while locals reported more than 200 killed—most of them men. Rights organizations estimate that over 800 people were killed across the region in the wake of the ambush.

One woman recounted how fighters entered her home multiple times before dragging her father and brothers outside and shooting them. Her injured brother feigned death, only to be gunned down as he tried to escape through the fields. Another survivor recalled militants taunting his family before executing his brother, despite his desperate pleas.

For nearly three days, bodies lay scattered in the streets. Fighters initially forbade villagers from retrieving their dead, locals said. On March 10, supervised burials began, with bodies dumped into mass graves near the village shrine. Satellite imagery confirmed evidence of freshly dug burial sites, with disturbed soil patterns matching the locations seen in videos from the ground.

Fear and Uncertainty

As Alawite survivors mourn their losses, many remain too afraid to return to their villages. Some still hope to provide their dead with proper religious burials, but the ongoing threat of violence leaves them in limbo.

“We will bury them with dignity,” said one survivor. “But first, we must feel safe enough to go home.”