Syria Ends Anti-Insurgency Op, Asked to Account for Civilian Killings

Syria's Islamist-led government on March 10 said it had completed a military operation against a nascent insurgency by loyalists of ousted president Bashar al-Assad, as it faced Western demands for accountability over the reported killing of hundreds of civilians.

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The violence in Syria's coastal region marks the biggest test for interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa since he seized power in December 2024, with hundreds of civilians reported by a war monitor to have been killed in Alawite villages as government forces sought to crush the insurrection by members of Mr. Assad's minority Alawite sect.

Mr. Sharaa, an Al-Qaeda leader before cutting ties with the group in 2016, has accused remnants of Mr. Assad's rule of seeking to drag Syria back into civil war.

He has announced the establishment of a fact-finding committee to look into the violence and vowed to hold to account those involved in civilian bloodshed.

In a Reuters interview, Mr. Sharaa said mass killings of Alawites were a threat to his mission to unite Syria, and promised to punish those responsible, including his own allies if necessary.

The violence has shaken his grip on the country as his administration grapples with myriad challenges, notably getting US sanctions lifted and winning international backing for his efforts to stitch Syria back together after 14 years of conflict.