The government of Syria under the control of jihadist terror organization Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) imposed curfews on multiple western regions of the country on Thursday and Friday following what is believed to have been an armed uprising by fighters loyal to deposed dictator Bashar Assad, who fled to Russia in December.
Monitor groups estimated that over 70 people were killed between Thursday night and Friday morning in the most violent clashes Syria has experienced since HTS, an al-Qaeda offshoot, toppled Assad in late 2024 and imposed itself as an Islamist, Sunni-led regime. HTS regime-affiliated officials claimed that the uprising was organized via social media and organized as an attempt to oust the jihadist group.
Some international media outlets have called the clashes an “attempted coup,” but no leader of the uprising has identified himself nor has any party made statements declaring the toppling of the HTS-led regime.
Aerial view of fighters with the new Syrian government lining the roadway on March 7, 2025 in Baniyas, Syria. Dozens of people have been killed in clashes between loyalists of the deposed Assad regime and forces of the country’s new rulers. It is the heaviest such fighting since Syrian rebels toppled the Assad regime last December. (Ali Haj Suleiman/Getty Images)
The Emirati newspaper The National, in part citing the non-governmental organization the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), reported on Friday that the HTS government lost at least 13 members of its security forces and have flooded Latakia and other former Assad strongholds with more fighters, particularly from the once-opposition stronghold of Idlib. Locals told the newspaper that “all Hell broke loose” on Thursday in what appeared to be an organized attempt to expel the de facto Syrian government from the area.
“We’re hearing gunfire, rockets, cannons, mortars – a lot of people are dying,” an unnamed eyewitness told The National, adding that he was trying to flee as quickly as possible and requesting prayers.
Videos emerging from the clashes in Latakia show buildings on fire and significant guerrilla-style fighting in the streets of Jableh.
The heart of the fighting occurred in Jableh, Latakia province, once a reliable stronghold for the Assad regime during the decade-plus that the Syrian Civil War raged. The HTS regime imposed curfews on Latakia as well as Homs and Tartous, areas with significant numbers of Alawite Shiite residents; Assad and his family are Alawites and many Sunni opponents of the Assad regime consider the Alawite population universally regime loyalists.
SOHR reported that the situation has caused significant alarm for Alawites, who are urging other Syrians not to associate their entire community with the uprising.
“Residents from the Alawite community in Syria have called for raising awareness and explained that the groups of gunmen affiliated with the former regime do not represent the Alawite community,” SOHR reported on Friday. “Alawite people have also stressed on enhancing civil peace and working together on aborting all efforts contributing to fueling sectarian hatred, confirming their support to the Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Interior Affairs and reaffirming their desire to maintain the national unity and stability.”
Both the HTS-led regime and locals indicated that the clashes appeared to have been planned in detail, rather than an outburst of uncontrolled violence. The National quoted a local resident saying that, “in the past days, we saw an incitement campaign on social media, with a leader from the remnants of Assad’s forces threatening Syria’s new security patrols and the army, saying they were the targets.”
“The operational tactics employed, including multi-axis co-ordination and strategic withdrawal into mountainous terrain post-engagement, reflect elements of well-executed guerrilla warfare,” Fadel Abdul Ghany, executive director of the Syrian Network for Human Rights, observed.
The SOHR identified “Suhail al-Hassan, a prominent military commander during Assad’s rule,” as a likely leader of the guerrilla uprising.
“It is worth noting that the local gunmen took control of military zones, especially Astamu airbase and Al-Qardaha,” the SOHR explained in an update on Thursday, “where they holed up in rough areas in Latakia mountains from which they launched their attacks against military and security forces of the new government.”
The HTS-led regime has endeavored to maintain the image of a united Syria and a small, albeit loud, opposition throughout the affair. The regime-controlled Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported that several major cities in uncontested HTS control staged rallies in support of the jihadist regime; as the regime does not respect freedom of expression, it is not possible to know how many of those participating did so willingly. The demonstrations allegedly look place in Idlib city, Latakia, Tartus, Baniyas, Homs and Daraa, according to the SOHR, and attracted “hundreds” of people.
The clashes represent a setback for HTS and its leader, “president” Ahmed al-Sharaa. Sharaa has spent the months following the collapse of the Assad regime rebranding himself as a Western-friendly populist leader, abandoning his jihadist name “Abu Mohammed al-Jolani” and wearing Western-style suits instead of military fatigues. Sharaa began a regional tour seeking support from foreign leaders with stops in Jordan, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia. This week, Sharaa attended an “emergency Arab summit” hosted by Egypt to work out a plan to reconstruct the Gaza Strip and keep President Donald Trump from implementing his plan for America to rebuild the war-torn territory.
