Fighters loyal to the interim Syrian government of President Ahmad Al Shara look out over the Mediterranean Sea from Latakia on Sunday. AFP
Fighters loyal to the interim Syrian government of President Ahmad Al Shara look out over the Mediterranean Sea from Latakia on Sunday. AFP
Fighters loyal to the interim Syrian government of President Ahmad Al Shara look out over the Mediterranean Sea from Latakia on Sunday. AFP
Fighters loyal to the interim Syrian government of President Ahmad Al Shara look out over the Mediterranean Sea from Latakia on Sunday. AFP

Syria’s grave sectarian violence exposes battle lines long in the making


Khaled Yacoub Oweis
  • English
  • Arabic

When it became fairly certain that former Syrian president Bashar Al Assad's regime was doomed in the first week of December, cars carrying hundreds of people clogged the main motorway from the centre of the country to the coast. They were fleeing Damascus, Homs and other cities to their home villages and towns in the Alawite mountains, and the plains on the sea below, inhabited by the sect.

The Alawites, an offshoot of Shiite Islam, had dominated power in Sunni majority Syria since a 1963 coup. Their rule ended when forces led by Hayat Tahrir Al Sham, a group formerly linked with Al Qaeda, removed the regime in December.

However, hundreds of Alawite civilians have been murdered in an HTS-led operation that the new government launched last week. It has been in response to what the authorities described as attacks by Assad regime remnants on security forces in Latakia and other areas on the coast.

The former regime had built outsize government and military compounds on the coast. Many thought they were designed to provide the Alawites with the underpinnings of an alternative state in case Syria broke up.

However, the bloodshed deep into the Alawite heartland, and the near absence of condemnation among Syria’s Sunni majority, has left the sect with little protection.

“God safeguards you,” Anas Ayrout, a prominent Sunni religious figure said as he greeted convoys of militiamen at the outskirts of his home city of Banias. They arrived last week to take part in the attack on districts in the city. Mr Ayrout described the operation as a “cleansing of Assad gangs”.

The Alawite heartland was so crucial to the survival of the former government that a threat of the area being swept by a rebel offensive sparked the Russian intervention in the Syrian civil war in 2015.

The late president Hafez Al Assad, the father of Bashar, appeared to think that the area was so impenetrable that he instructed his family to bury him in his birthplace of Al Qardaha, in the Alawite mountains. Twenty-four years after his death, Sunni rebels reached Al Qardaha, and set Mr Al Assad’s grave on fire. The Alawite sect is seen by many Sunnis as having usurped the state.

HTS soon sent its forces into Alawite coastal area and in the central governorate of Homs, with the declared objective of neutralising regime forces. Dozens of Alawites have been killed in the campaign during January, often in their neighbourhoods and towns. Most the dead were militiamen or ex-members of the former regime security apparatus, it was claimed.

However, victims of the new offensive, which started last week after two members of the HTS-led security forces were killed in an Alawite district of Latakia, have been civilians.

Ahmad Aba Zeid, an independent Syrian researcher, said that the new authorities had no choice except to sweep into the coast, otherwise regime holdout forces would take more ground or become entrenched. He added that the campaign has lacked organisation, with foreign fighters and local militiamen fighting along HTS.

Regardless of who massacred the Alawite civilians, the HTS led authorities were supposed to protect them and “take responsibility” for the operations launched in the name of the new government, he said.

DUBAI CARNIVAL RESULTS

6.30pm Handicap US$135,000 (Turf) 2,410m

Winner Dubai Future, Harry Bentley (jockey), Saeed bin Suroor (trainer).

7.05pm UAE 1000 Guineas Listed $250,000 (Dirt) 1,600m

Winner Dubai Love, Patrick Cosgrave, Saeed bin Suroor.

7.40pm Dubai Dash Listed $175,000 (T) 1,000m

Winner: Equilateral, James Doyle, Charles Hills.

8.15pm Al Bastakiya Trial Conditions $100,000 (D) 1.900m

Winner Laser Show, Kevin Stott, Saeed bin Suroor.

8.50pm Al Fahidi Fort Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,400m

Winner Glorious Journey, James Doyle, Charlie Appleby.

9.25pm Handicap $135,000 (D) 2,000m

Winner George Villiers, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.

In numbers

- Number of children under five will fall from 681 million in 2017 to 401m in 2100

- Over-80s will rise from 141m in 2017 to 866m in 2100

- Nigeria will become the world’s second most populous country with 791m by 2100, behind India

- China will fall dramatically from a peak of 2.4 billion in 2024 to 732 million by 2100

- an average of 2.1 children per woman is required to sustain population growth

Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
  • Priority access to new homes from participating developers
  • Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
  • Flexible payment plans from developers
  • Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
  • DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
How to protect yourself when air quality drops

Install an air filter in your home.

Close your windows and turn on the AC.

Shower or bath after being outside.

Wear a face mask.

Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.

If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.

Paatal Lok season two

Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy 

Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong

Rating: 4.5/5

SOUTH%20KOREA%20SQUAD
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The schedule

December 5 - 23: Shooting competition, Al Dhafra Shooting Club

December 9 - 24: Handicrafts competition, from 4pm until 10pm, Heritage Souq

December 11 - 20: Dates competition, from 4pm

December 12 - 20: Sour milk competition

December 13: Falcon beauty competition

December 14 and 20: Saluki races

December 15: Arabian horse races, from 4pm

December 16 - 19: Falconry competition

December 18: Camel milk competition, from 7.30 - 9.30 am

December 20 and 21: Sheep beauty competition, from 10am

December 22: The best herd of 30 camels

Challenge Cup result:

1. UAE 3 faults
2. Ireland 9 faults
3. Brazil 11 faults
4. Spain 15 faults
5. Great Britain 17 faults
6. New Zealand 20 faults
7. Italy 26 faults

Tamkeen's offering
  • Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
  • Option 2: 50% across three years
  • Option 3: 30% across five years 
Tell Me Who I Am

Director: Ed Perkins

Stars: Alex and Marcus Lewis

Four stars

Desert Warrior

Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley

Director: Rupert Wyatt

Rating: 3/5

Sarfira

Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad

Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal 

Rating: 2/5

SERIE A FIXTURES

Saturday

AC Milan v Sampdoria (2.30pm kick-off UAE)

Atalanta v Udinese (5pm)

Benevento v Parma (5pm)

Cagliari v Hellas Verona (5pm)

Genoa v Fiorentina (5pm)

Lazio v Spezia (5pm)

Napoli v Crotone (5pm)

Sassuolo v Roma (5pm)

Torino v Juventus (8pm)

Bologna v Inter Milan (10.45pm)

MATCH INFO

Manchester United 1 (Fernandes pen 2') Tottenham Hotspur 6 (Ndombele 4', Son 7' & 37' Kane (30' & pen 79, Aurier 51')

Man of the match Son Heung-min (Tottenham)

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Ain Dubai in numbers

126: The length in metres of the legs supporting the structure

1 football pitch: The length of each permanent spoke is longer than a professional soccer pitch

16 A380 Airbuses: The equivalent weight of the wheel rim.

9,000 tonnes: The amount of steel used to construct the project.

5 tonnes: The weight of each permanent spoke that is holding the wheel rim in place

192: The amount of cable wires used to create the wheel. They measure a distance of 2,4000km in total, the equivalent of the distance between Dubai and Cairo.

The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo

The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
​​​​​​​Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
EA Sports FC 24
THE DETAILS

Kaala

Dir: Pa. Ranjith

Starring: Rajinikanth, Huma Qureshi, Easwari Rao, Nana Patekar  

Rating: 1.5/5 

Real estate tokenisation project

Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.

The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.

Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.

Why your domicile status is important

Your UK residence status is assessed using the statutory residence test. While your residence status – ie where you live - is assessed every year, your domicile status is assessed over your lifetime.

Your domicile of origin generally comes from your parents and if your parents were not married, then it is decided by your father. Your domicile is generally the country your father considered his permanent home when you were born. 

UK residents who have their permanent home ("domicile") outside the UK may not have to pay UK tax on foreign income. For example, they do not pay tax on foreign income or gains if they are less than £2,000 in the tax year and do not transfer that gain to a UK bank account.

A UK-domiciled person, however, is liable for UK tax on their worldwide income and gains when they are resident in the UK.

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Honeymoonish
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Elie%20El%20Samaan%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENour%20Al%20Ghandour%2C%20Mahmoud%20Boushahri%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Our family matters legal consultant

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

Match info:

Leicester City 1
Ghezzal (63')

Liverpool 2
Mane (10'), Firmino (45')

Updated: March 09, 2025, 11:51 PM