Syrians divided over credibility of probe into coastal massacres

Syrians are expressing sharply diverging opinions over whether the investigative committee tasked with looking into the violence in the Syrian coastal region in March will yield results.

The investigative committee formed by President Ahmed al-Sharaa to investigate the unlawful killings that took place in Syria's coastal region in early March this year is expected to submit its final report by 9 July. This follows four months of investigations, witness interviews, and site inspections.

Last March's bloody events on the Syrian coast lasted several days, following an attempted takeover by armed groups loyal to the former Assad regime.

While the Syrian government eventually managed to regain control of the region, the operation was marred by widespread violations, including the killing of civilians, with members of the Alawite community in particular targeted.

Looting and burning of property by armed factions affiliated with the new authorities also took place.

Divisions arise over the investigative committee

Mudhar al-Ali, a resident of the village of Sanobar between Latakia and Jableh, whose relative was killed in the attacks, told The New Arab's sister site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that members of the investigative committee had visited the village and listened to residents' accounts.

Residents had also shown them the location of a mass grave and identified the attackers.

However, he questioned whether the perpetrators of these crimes would be held accountable.

"How can a committee formed by the president investigate crimes committed by the government's own ministry of defence forces?" he asked.

He added that a number of "officers who led some of the operations that resulted in crimes in the coastal area had been promoted before the operation, yet kept their positions after it - like Muhammad al-Jassem, known as Abu Amsha, and Ahmad Ihsan Fayad al-Hayes, known as Abu Hatem Shaqra - both of whom have been appointed as military division commanders in the Ministry of Defence."

He added: "There should have been international involvement, like the UN or human rights organisations. In general, I don't expect anything serious to come from the work of this committee."

Muhammad al-Jassem (Abu Amsha) was added to the EU's Syria-related sanctions list in late May, alongside his faction, the "Sultan Suleiman Shah brigade", due to their alleged involvement in violations committed in the Syrian coastal region.

Meanwhile, the town of Jableh - which has a mixed Sunni-Alawite population - is still suffering the aftermath of the events last March and has seen visible divisions.

Hassan, who withheld his full identity, says he witnessed former regime militiamen in the streets killing members of the General Security forces.

He says he gave his full testimony to the investigative committee: "They listened to my testimony, asked for very specific details, and called me two days later to verify some information. I sensed their full seriousness in the investigation and hope that justice will take its course," he said.

Meanwhile, in other neighbourhoods in Jableh, formerly considered bastions of support for Bashar al-Assad's regime - and where abuses and killings occurred during the coastal atrocities - there was a noticeable disconnect and lack of communication with the investigative committee.

When many residents were asked about the committee, the most common response was: "We haven't seen or heard of it."

However, Mais Fares, whose brother was murdered last March in the wave of killings, said she'd been personally contacted by the investigative committee to give her testimony.

She said the committee had tried hard "to obtain any piece of information, no matter how small of large" and commended the "decency" and "non-sectarianism" of those who interviewed her.

Al-Araby Al-Jadeed contacted Yasser Farhan, the media spokesperson for the investigative committee, to address some questions and outline the challenges faced by the committee, but he declined to comment, stating that the committee would withhold media statements until its work was completed.

Fadel Abdulghany, founder and director of SNHR, believes it is too early to judge the committee's work and that it would be better to wait for the report to be issued.

He added: "We hope the report will be objective, independent, and uphold the language of human rights, treating all victims equally. It should establish the facts and follow a consistent methodology that is able to address the shortcomings that occurred and bring those involved in the massacres to justice."

Fears persists among coastal communities

Ali Nsour, a Jableh resident who is participating in community peace-building initiatives in the town, revealed that there is still a state of fear among many in the coastal region, who are fearful of revenge attacks occurring.

"This fear is preventing many from testifying and giving their statements," he said. He believes the lack of participation from human rights or international organisations, as well as the absence of real protection for eyewitnesses, had weakened the committee's ability to reach a larger number of local people, including relatives of the victims.

Nsour added: "We have to be clear that most Syrians from the Alawite sect still don't trust this committee, because it has emerged from the same authorities accused of having caused these massacres".

According to the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR), at least 1,217 people were killed during the coastal violence, among them 51 children and 63 women, by government-linked armed forces. An additional 445 people, including nine children and 21 women, were killed by non-state armed groups affiliated with the ousted Assad regime.

This is an edited and abridged translation from our Arabic edition.

Editor's note: This article was updated on 27 June 2025 to reflect the increased death toll reported by the Syrian Network of Human Rights (SNHR)