Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr speaks during a press conference in Iraq
Monitor
‘Sorrowful news’: Al-Sadr urges ‘wisdom and caution’ as death toll rises in Syria’s Alawite regions
BAGHDAD — Iraqi cleric Muqtada Al-Sadr on Saturday voiced alarm over reports that Alawites in Syria are facing violent reprisals under the new government.
“We receive sorrowful news from our sister country, Syria, where the Alawite sect is being targeted by the new government with violent methods that may amount to sectarian cleansing,” Sadr said in a statement. He urged Alawites to act “with wisdom and caution to preserve Syrian unity and deny extremists and lurking enemies—namely the Zionists and their supporters—the opportunity to invade Syria.”
On March 6, armed groups loyal to former President Bashar al-Assad attacked government forces in Jableh and Latakia, briefly seizing parts of Qardaha and killing at least 13 security officers. Officials on Saturday deployed security forces across the Alawite heartland along the Mediterranean coast, as residents continued to report civilian killings following Thursday’s confrontations between the new authorities and Assad loyalists.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 745 Alawite civilians were killed in Latakia and Tartus, describing the situation as “ethnic cleansing” and demanding prosecutions. “They committed these crimes based on sectarian identity, not as remnants of the regime,” Observatory Director Rami Abdul Rahman said, adding that many Alawites fled to the Russian-controlled Hmeimim airbase for protection. He likened the attacks to “the Mongols of this era.”
The overall death toll from the violence since Thursday has reached 1,018, including 125 members of the security forces, according to the Observatory.
Statement by Al-Sadr:
We receive sorrowful news from our sister country, Syria, where the Alawite sect is being targeted by the new government with violent methods that may amount to sectarian cleansing.
Therefore, we urge our Alawite brothers to act with wisdom and caution to preserve Syrian unity and deny extremists and lurking enemies—namely the Zionists and their supporters—the opportunity to invade Syria.
Likewise, the new government must refrain from violence and sectarianism… so that they are not accused of being ISIS and terrorists.
Daesh are those with whom sects, ethnicities, and all other affiliations cannot coexist, as we have come to know them.
Additionally, neighboring countries of Syria must avoid escalating their statements… to prevent the situation from worsening.
And while I did not previously intervene in the Syrian revolution against the dictator, I cannot remain silent without declaring a position regarding the executions taking place in Syria’s streets…
I also warn the government against resembling the ousted dictator… for otherwise, the only victim will be the proud Syrian people.
