Turmoil in Syria: Rebel Forces Clash with Loyalists Amid Ongoing Unrest

In a dramatic escalation of violence, rebel-led authorities in Syria reported that 14 personnel from the interior ministry were killed and 10 others injured in an ambush by forces loyal to the ousted President Bashar al-Assad. The confrontation occurred near the Mediterranean port city of Tartous on Tuesday, highlighting the ongoing instability in the region.

The ambush targeted security forces as they attempted to apprehend a former officer linked to the infamous Saydnaya prison, located near the capital, Damascus. This incident follows just weeks after rebel factions, led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), successfully overthrew Assad’s regime, ending over 50 years of family rule.

According to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), three militants were also killed in the clashes, which prompted security forces to call in reinforcements. The situation remains tense as the HTS-led offensive continues to reshape the power dynamics across Syria.

In a separate but related development, Syrian authorities imposed an overnight curfew in Homs following unrest sparked by a controversial video that allegedly depicted an attack on an Alawite shrine. State media claimed the video was old, dating back to the late November rebel offensive on Aleppo, and insisted the violence was instigated by unknown groups.

The SOHR reported that one demonstrator was killed and five others wounded during protests in Homs, with additional demonstrations erupting in Tartous, Latakia, and Qardaha, the hometown of the Assad family. The Alawites, a minority sect from which Assad hails, have been central figures in the former regime’s political and military hierarchy.

As HTS consolidates power, it has pledged to safeguard the rights and freedoms of Syria’s diverse religious and ethnic minorities, despite being designated as a terrorist organization by the UN, the US, the EU, and the UK. The situation remains fluid as the country grapples with the aftermath of a tumultuous political upheaval.