Coordinated Attacks in Syria’s Coastal and Sweida Regions Raise Accountability Concerns

Coordinated Attacks in Syria’s Coastal and Sweida Regions Raise Accountability Concerns
……………

Human rights groups have documented a series of coordinated massacres in Syria’s coastal and Sweida regions, emphasizing that the violence was systematic rather than isolated incidents. According to Bassam Al-Ahmad, executive director of Syrians for Truth and Justice, the transitional Syrian government bears primary responsibility for these violations, which have been extensively recorded by international and local monitoring organizations.

Since the fall of the previous regime in December 2024 and the formation of the transitional government in early 2025, waves of violence targeted Latakia, Tartus, Hama, Sweida, and surrounding rural areas. Reports indicate widespread killings, looting, property destruction, and attacks on civilians, reflecting a pattern of organized violence against specific communities.

Between March 6–9, coastal massacres claimed over 1,479 lives, predominantly from the Alawite community, with 872 deaths in Latakia, 525 in Tartus, and 272 in Hama. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported a total of 1,682 victims documented by name. Around 1,200 individuals were also detained without clear legal procedures, with little information on their whereabouts.

In Sweida and nearby areas, violence escalated starting July 13, resulting in more than 2,048 deaths, including 817 Druze civilians, and 516 reported missing or kidnapped, of whom 103 were women. Human Rights Watch, Syrians for Truth and Justice, and the Syrian Archive confirmed that abuses spanned 24 towns and neighborhoods, encompassing extrajudicial killings, home raids, arson, looting, and identity-based attacks, supported by interviews, audiovisual evidence, and satellite imagery.

Human rights advocates stress that these actions were coordinated at high levels of the military and government. Al-Ahmad called for accountability of both military and civil leaders and urged consultation with victims’ families to pursue justice through international courts or independent commissions, ensuring thorough investigation and redress for those affected.