Syria presidential decree extends investigation into sectarian massacres

Syrian president Ahmed al-Sharaa on Thursday extended by three months the deadline for an investigation into the massacre of hundreds of members of the Alawite minority community which followed an uprising of armed fighters loyal to ousted dictator Bashar al-Assad.

Sharaa issued a presidential decree extending the work of the National Committee for Investigation and Fact-Finding regarding the events in the Syrian coast.

The decree was issued based on the constitutional powers granted to the president and stated that, "After reviewing the preliminary report submitted by the committee formed under Presidential Decree No. (3), the extension request submitted by the committee was approved due to the need to complete its work in accordance with the standards adopted in investigations."

The decree says that the committee's work can continue for three months but cannot be extended further. 

Sharaa previously issued a presidential decree forming an independent national committee to investigate and uncover the facts regarding the events on the Syrian coast, "in commitment to civil peace and revealing the truth,"  as announced by the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) in March.

The Syrian presidency stated that "the committee’s task is to uncover the causes, circumstances, and context of those events, and to investigate the violations that civilians were subjected to". 

The committee originally had a maximum of 30 days to issue its finding.

Previously the committee had announced, on 11 March, its commitment to ensuring that no perpetrator will escape punishment, noting that it aims to complete the investigations within 30 days.

During a press conference, the committee stated that the investigations cover the events that occurred on the 6th, 7th, and 8th of the previous month, emphasizing that “no one is above the law.

During an unprecedented armed uprising by supporters of the former regime, concentrated largely in Latakia, Tartous, and Hama, rogue elements of Syria's nascent security forces carried out attacks on Alawite civilians — a minority group to which the Assad family belongs.

The Syrian Network for Human Rights estimates that at least 803 extrajudicial killings took place between 6-10 March.