Syrians question results of govt fact-finding mission into Alawite killings

Syrians are criticising and casting doubt on the findings of an inquiry into killings and massacres in the country’s Alawite-majority coastal region earlier this year, amid the unrest in the Druze-majority Suweida province.

On Tuesday, a committee that was investigating the March attacks in the coastal Latakia and Tartus provinces and other areas said it had identified 298 suspects implicated in serious violations, which killed at least 1,426 Alawites - mostly civilians.

The committee's investigation documented "serious violations against civilians on March 7, 8 and 9, including murder, premeditated murder, looting, destruction and burning of homes, torture and sectarian insults", spokesman Yasser al-Farhan told a press conference in Damascus.

Forces aligned to the new Syrian government, which replaced the long-ruling Assad regime that was ousted in December by the same rebels now in power, were accused of carrying out summary executions and committing other grave violations.

Many Syrian communities, especially among religious and ethnic minorities, are already worried about their fate in the war-torn and fractured country.

Despite repeated assurances by President Ahmed al-Sharaa, members of these communities have voiced a lack of trust in the new leadership.

Syrian activists and social media figures with a large following have accused the Islamist-leaning administration in Damascus, which has incorporated foreign fighters, of emboldening the actions of armed groups on the ground.

Sharaa himself led the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group, which was once aligned with Al-Qaeda before severing ties to it in 2017, and spearheaded December’s rebellion to topple Assad.

Many Syrians have cast doubt on the findings of the committee, questioning its credibility.

While Sharaa had denounced the violence against the Alawites - the sect to which Assad belongs - his critics say condemnation isn’t enough amid continued reports of killings, kidnappings and other lawless acts in Syria.

"Syrians are contending with one of the most dangerous phases of a revolution: the post-fall period of a decades-old tyrannical and brutish regime," The New Arab’s International Editor in Beirut, Yazan al-Saadi said.

"In that spirit, there are a lot of people hoping to give the benefit of the doubt to the Sharaa regime and how it has conducted itself over the past few months and the actions and policies it has taken," he added.

He says that Syrians hope practical steps will be taken after the committee revealed its findings into the coastal massacres, which came in light of the week-long clashes in the Druze heartland of Suweida.

"But for other eyes within Syria, specifically among minority communities, civil rights groups, progressive Syrians, and others, the committee's findings and the Sharaa regime are falling far short on the desires and hopes of forming a democratic system," said Saadi.

"Desires for true justice and accountability, which is pivotal for the future of Syria, is clearly colliding with political self-interests of a new political, and arguably draconian, system gradually being formed today."

Probing Suweida massacres

Syria’s defence and interior ministries announced they were "monitoring violations" that occurred during the clashes in Suweida, including those committed by their own personnel, vowing to hold those responsible accountable.

Like in the coastal region, the government and its allied forces have been accused of horrific crimes in the southern province, including field executions of which dozens have been filmed and widely shared on the internet.

The fighting pitted Druze militias against Bedouin Sunni fighters and government forces. All sides have been accused of atrocities.

Different war monitors have placed the death toll anywhere between 600 and 1,300, as more bodies are discovered amid a catastrophic humanitarian situation that has seen Suweida cut off from electricity and water, and where basic medical and food supplies are running out.

The defence ministry "is following up on reports of shocking and serious violations committed by an unknown group wearing military uniforms in the city of Suweida," according to a statement carried by the official SANA news agency.

"Based on the strict directives issued by the ministry prohibiting the entry of any [military] formations not affiliated with it into the operations zone, a committee has been formed to follow up on the violations that occurred in the city of Suweida and to investigate the affiliation and background of the individuals responsible," it said.

The ministry confirmed that "the severest penalties will be imposed on those individuals involved" in the violations in the city of Suweida, "once they are identified."

Defence Minister Muhaf Abu Qasra said the probe will include everyone featured in the "shocking and horrific" footage, and the results will be presented as soon as the committee’s work concludes.

Hundreds or possibly thousands of fighters who have been integrated into Syria’s armed forces or are still operating in the country are foreign Islamists, including Chechnyan, Uyghur, Turkic and other ethnicities.

Among the numerous challenges facing Syria's future is the question of foreign fighters and how they are conducting themselves within the country, says Saadi.

"While the Sharaa regime is incorporating them, or at least, trying to centralise the monopoly of violence – a process that is mixed so far – the continued existence of foreign fighters is concerning for many Syrian communities, particularly the rigid and fanatical conservatives they represent," he says.