2 days of clashes and revenge killings in Syria leave more than 1,000 people dead

Update 2 days of clashes and revenge killings in Syria leave more than 1,000 people dead
This handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) on Mar. 8, 2025, shows Syrian forces manning a checkpoint in the coastal city of Latakia. (AFP)
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Updated 09 March 2025
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2 days of clashes and revenge killings in Syria leave more than 1,000 people dead

2 days of clashes and revenge killings in Syria leave more than 1,000 people dead
  • Syrian government says they were responding to attacks from remnants of Assad’s forces and blamed “individual actions” for the rampant violence.
  • Residents of Baniyas describe bodies strewn on the streets or left unburied in homes and on roofs of buildings

BEIRUT: The death toll from two days of clashes between security forces and loyalists of ousted Syrian President Bashar Assad and revenge killings that followed has risen to more than 1,000, including 750 civilians, a war monitoring group said Saturday, making it one of the deadliest acts of violence since Syria’s conflict began 14 years ago.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said in addition to 745 civilians, mostly killed in massacres, 125 government security force members and 148 militants with armed groups affiliated with Assad were killed. It added that electricity and drinking water were cut off in large areas around the city of Latakia.
The clashes, which erupted Thursday, marked a major escalation in the challenge to the new government in Damascus, three months after insurgents took authority after removing Assad from power.
The government has said that they were responding to attacks from remnants of Assad’s forces and blamed “individual actions” for the rampant violence.
The revenge killings that started Friday by Sunni Muslim gunmen loyal to the government against members of Assad’s minority Alawite sect are a major blow to Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham, the faction that led the overthrow of the former government. Alawites made up a large part of Assad’s support base for decades.
Residents of Alawite villages and towns spoke to The Associated Press about killings during which gunmen shot Alawites, the majority of them men, in the streets or at the gates of their homes. Many homes of Alawites were looted and then set on fire in different areas, two residents of Syria’s coastal region told the AP from their hideouts.
They asked that their names not be made public out of fear of being killed by gunmen, adding that thousands of people have fled to nearby mountains for safety.
Residents of Baniyas, one of the towns worst hit by the violence, said bodies were strewn on the streets or left unburied in homes and on the roofs of buildings, and nobody was able to collect them. One resident said that the gunmen prevented residents for hours from removing the bodies of five of their neighbors killed Friday at close range.
Ali Sheha, a 57-year-old resident of Baniyas who fled with his family and neighbors hours after the violence broke out Friday, said that at least 20 of his neighbors and colleagues in one neighborhood of Baniyas where Alawites lived, were killed, some of them in their shops, or in their homes.
Sheha called the attacks “revenge killings” of the Alawite minority for the crimes committed by Assad’s government. Other residents said the gunmen included foreign fighters, and militants from neighboring villages and towns.
“It was very very bad. Bodies were on the streets,” as he was fleeing, Sheha said, speaking by phone from nearly 20 kilometers away from the city. He said the gunmen were gathering less than 100 meters from his apartment building, firing randomly at homes and residents and in at least one incident he knows of, asked residents for their IDs to check their religion and their sect before killing them. He said the gunmen also burned some homes and stole cars and robbed homes.
The Observatory’s chief Rami Abdurrahman said that revenge killings stopped early Saturday.
“This was one of the biggest massacres during the Syrian conflict,” Abdurrahman said about the killings of Alawite civilians.
The previous figure given by the group was more than 200 dead. No official figures have been released.
A funeral was held Saturday afternoon for four Syrian security force members in the northwestern village of Al-Janoudiya after they were killed in the clashes along Syria’s coast. Scores of people attended the funeral.
Syria’s state news agency quoted an unnamed Defense Ministry official as saying that government forces have regained control of much of the areas from Assad loyalists. It added that authorities have closed all roads leading to the coastal region “to prevent violations and gradually restore stability.”
On Saturday morning, the bodies of 31 people killed in revenge attacks the day before in the central village of Tuwaym were laid to rest in a mass grave, residents said. Those killed included nine children and four women, the residents said, sending the AP photos of the bodies draped in white cloth as they were lined in the mass grave.
Lebanese legislator Haidar Nasser, who holds one of the two seats allocated to the Alawite sect in parliament, said that people were fleeing from Syria for safety in Lebanon. He said he didn’t have exact numbers.
Nasser said that many people were sheltering at the Russian air base in Hmeimim, Syria, adding that the international community should protect Alawites who are Syrian citizens loyal to their country. He said that since Assad’s fall, many Alawites were fired from their jobs and some former soldiers who reconciled with the new authorities were killed.
Under Assad, Alawites held top posts in the army and security agencies. The new government has blamed his loyalists for attacks against the country’s new security forces over the past several weeks.
The most recent clashes started when government forces tried to detain a wanted person near the coastal city of Jableh, and were ambushed by Assad loyalists, according to the Observatory.


King Abdullah invited to attend Arab Summit in Baghdad as Jordan and Iraq discuss regional cooperation

King Abdullah invited to attend Arab Summit in Baghdad as Jordan and Iraq discuss regional cooperation
Updated 20 April 2025
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King Abdullah invited to attend Arab Summit in Baghdad as Jordan and Iraq discuss regional cooperation

King Abdullah invited to attend Arab Summit in Baghdad as Jordan and Iraq discuss regional cooperation

AMMAN: Jordan’s King Abdullah II on Sunday received an official invitation from Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid to attend the 34th Ordinary Session of the Council of the League of Arab States at the Summit Level, scheduled for Baghdad on May 17.

The invitation was delivered by Iraq’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Fuad Hussein during a meeting with King Abdullah at Al-Husseiniya Palace, the Jordan News Agency reported.

The king asked Hussein to convey his greetings to Rashid and expressed Jordan’s eagerness to ensure the success of the upcoming summit. He also highlighted the importance of Arab solidarity and joint efforts to support Arab causes, particularly in light of current regional developments.

Ayman Safadi, Jordan’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister, also attended the meeting.

Earlier in the day, Safadi received Hussein upon his arrival in Jordan.

Ayman Safadi, Jordan’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister (R) with Iraq’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Fuad Hussein (L). (Petra)

The two ministers held talks focused on enhancing relations and exchanging views on the latest developments in the region, JNA reported

They reaffirmed the deep-rooted ties between Jordan and Iraq and underscored the commitment of both leaderships to advancing cooperation across various sectors in service of mutual interests, JNA added.

The discussions touched on preparations for the upcoming Arab Summit, with both sides emphasizing the importance of bolstering joint Arab action and strengthening coordination to address challenges facing the Arab world and to promote regional stability and development.


Israeli probe into the killings of Palestinian medics finds ‘professional failures’

Israeli probe into the killings of Palestinian medics finds ‘professional failures’
Updated 20 April 2025
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Israeli probe into the killings of Palestinian medics finds ‘professional failures’

Israeli probe into the killings of Palestinian medics finds ‘professional failures’
  • Israel at first claimed that the medics’ vehicles did not have emergency signals on when troops opened fire but later backtracked

JERUSALEM: An Israeli probe into the killings of 15 Palestinian medics last month in Gaza by Israeli forces said Sunday it has found “professional failures” and a deputy commander will be fired.
Israel at first claimed that the medics’ vehicles did not have emergency signals on when troops opened fire but later backtracked. Cellphone video recovered from one of the medics contradicted Israel’s initial account.
The military investigation found that the deputy battalion commander, “due to poor night visibility,” assessed that the ambulances belonged to Hamas militants. Video footage obtained from the incident shows the ambulances had lights flashing and logos visible, as they pulled up to help an ambulance that had come under fire earlier.

 

The teams do not appear to be acting unusually or in a threatening manner as three medics emerge and head toward the stricken ambulance. Their vehicles immediately come under a barrage of gunfire that goes on for more than five minutes with brief pauses.
Eight Red Crescent personnel, six Civil Defense workers and a UN staffer were killed in the shooting before dawn on March 23 by troops conducting operations in Tel Al-Sultan, a district of the southern Gaza city of Rafah. Troops then bulldozed over the bodies along with their mangled vehicles, burying them in a mass grave. UN and rescue workers were only able to reach the site a week later to dig out the bodies.
The head of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society has said the slain men were “targeted at close range.”
The Israeli military investigation said the Palestinians were killed due to an “operational misunderstanding” by Israeli forces, and that a separate incident 15 minutes later, when Israeli soldiers shot at a Palestinian UN vehicle, was a breach of orders.
It was not immediately clear whether the military investigation found that any of those killed were Hamas militants. Israel’s military initially said nine were militants.
The investigation found that the decision to crush the ambulances was wrong but denied that there was an attempt to conceal the event.
“The examination found no evidence to support claims of execution or that any of the deceased were bound before or after the shooting,” it added.
Israel has accused Hamas of moving and hiding its fighters inside ambulances and emergency vehicles, as well as in hospitals and other civilian infrastructure, arguing that justifies strikes on them. Medical personnel largely deny the accusations.
Israeli strikes have killed more than 150 emergency responders from the Red Crescent and Civil Defense, most of them while on duty, as well as over 1,000 health workers, according to the UN The Israeli military rarely investigates such incidents.
Palestinians and international human rights groups have repeatedly accused Israel’s military of failing to properly investigate or whitewashing misconduct by its troops.
The International Criminal Court, established by the international community as a court of last resort, has accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant of war crimes. Israel, which is not a member of the court, has long asserted that its legal system is capable of investigating the army, and Netanyahu has accused the ICC of antisemitism.


Gaza rescuers say Israeli air strikes kill 25

Gaza rescuers say Israeli air strikes kill 25
A displaced Palestinian woman cooks near an unexploded ordnance, with explosive materials left behind by Israeli troops (AFP)
Updated 20 April 2025
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Gaza rescuers say Israeli air strikes kill 25

Gaza rescuers say Israeli air strikes kill 25
  • The overall death toll in the Gaza war has reached 51,201
  • Israel resumed its aerial and ground assault on Gaza on March 18

GAZA:: Gaza’s civil defense agency reported that Israeli air strikes since dawn on Sunday have killed at least 25 people across the Gaza Strip, including women and children.
Israel resumed its aerial and ground assault on Gaza on March 18, reigniting fighting after a two-month ceasefire that had paused more than 15 months of war in the coastal territory.
“Since dawn today, the occupation’s air strikes have killed 20 people and injured dozens more, including children and women across the Gaza Strip,” Mahmud Bassal, spokesman for the civil defense agency told AFP.
In a separate statement later, the agency reported that five people were killed in an Israeli drone strike on a group of civilians in eastern Rafah.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday vowed to continue the war and bring home the remaining hostages held in Gaza without yielding to Hamas’s demands.
“We are at a critical stage of the campaign, and at this point, we need patience and determination to win,” Netanyahu said in a statement, rejecting calls from the militants to end the war and withdraw troops from Gaza.
Since Israel resumed its offensive last month, at least 1,827 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.
The overall death toll in the Gaza war has reached 51,201, the majority of them civilians, according to the ministry, figures the UN considers reliable.
The war broke out after Hamas’s unprecedented attack on Israel in October 2023, which resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.
During that attack, Palestinian militants abducted 251 people, 58 of whom are still held hostage in Gaza, including 34 the military says are dead.


Syrian Airlines announces resumption of direct flights to the UAE

Syrian Airlines announces resumption of direct flights to the UAE
Workers give maintenance to a Syrian Arab Airlines Airbus A320-200 aircraft at Damascus international airport (AFP)
Updated 20 April 2025
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Syrian Airlines announces resumption of direct flights to the UAE

Syrian Airlines announces resumption of direct flights to the UAE
  • Syrian Airlines said that it is working to expand its network as quickly as possible

DUBAI: Syrian Airlines on Sunday officially announced the resumption of direct flights between Syria and the UAE, the Syrian Arab News Agency reported.

The initial phase will include exceptional flights to Dubai and Sharjah.

According to a statement on the airline’s official Facebook page, four weekly flights will operate between Damascus and Dubai on Saturdays, Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, with plans to expand to daily services soon.

Flights to Sharjah will run on Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays, with efforts underway to increase them to daily flights.

Damascus-Abu Dhabi routes will operate on Tuesdays and Fridays.

Syrian Airlines said that it is working to expand its network as quickly as possible, pending the necessary approvals from relevant authorities.

Travelers are encouraged to contact the airline’s offices inside or outside Syria for more information.


Yemen’s Houthis say two killed in US stikes on Sanaa area

Yemen’s Houthis say two killed in US stikes on Sanaa area
Updated 20 April 2025
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Yemen’s Houthis say two killed in US stikes on Sanaa area

Yemen’s Houthis say two killed in US stikes on Sanaa area
  • The Iran-backed group reported two deaths and 11 injured in the “US aggression on Sanaa”

SANAA: At least two people were killed in overnight US strikes in and around Yemen’s capital Sanaa, media controlled by the Houthi militants reported Sunday, in the latest such air raid.
The Iran-backed group’s Al-Masirah channel, citing the militants’ health ministry, reported two deaths and 11 injured in the “US aggression on Sanaa, the capital, and the governorate.”
The channel earlier said one person was killed in an air strike on the governorate’s Bani Matar area, where a deadly US raid was reported a week ago.
Beyond Sanaa, the Houthis said Sunday that air strikes also hit Yemen’s Marib and Amran provinces.
Earlier this week, the group said that US strikes on the fuel port of Ras Issa killed at least 80 people and wounded 150 in the deadliest attack of Washington’s 15-month campaign against the Houthis.
The US military has hammered the Yemeni Houthis with near-daily air strikes for the past month in a bid to stamp out their attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
Claiming solidarity with Palestinians, the rebels began attacking the key maritime route and Israeli territory after the Gaza war began in October 2023.
The US strikes began in January 2024 but have multiplied under President Donald Trump, starting with an offensive that killed 53 people on March 15.
Houthi attacks on the Red Sea shipping route, which normally carries about 12 percent of global trade, have forced many companies into costly detours around the tip of southern Africa.