Members of the Alawite community protest in Latakia, Syria, December 28, 2025 (Ahmad Fallaha/EPA)
How Israel Tries to Undermine Syria’s Government
Three people have been killed, including a security officer, and 60 wounded in clashes in western Syria, amid protests over Friday’s bombing of a mosque in Homs.
Members of Syria’s Alawite religious group were rallying on Sunday. They were confronted by pro-government demonstrators, and masked attackers opened fire and threw grenades at security personnel.
Eight people were slain and 18 injured during Friday Prayers in the Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib Mosque when an explosive was detonated inside the building. The mosque is in the Wadi al-Dhahab neighborhood, where most residents are Alawites.
Authorities have not identified a suspect, but the jihadist group Saraya Ansar al-Sunnah claimed responsibility for the explosion.
Alawites are an offshoot of Shia Islam. Many people in the overthrown Assad regime, including Bashar al-Assad, were members.
The call for Sunday’s demonstrations was made by Ghazal Ghazal, an Alawite leader living outside Syria. Protesters demanded that the government implement federalism, decentralization, and the release of detainees.
The Syrian Defense Ministry said the army entered the city centers of Latakia and Tartous in western Syria with armored vehicles and tanks.
The Latakia governorate’s media office said three people were killed and more than 40 wounded. State media agency SANA reported the security officer was killed by gunfire from “armed remnants of the former regime”. It said civilians and other security personnel were wounded by gunfire from unknown assailants near Azhari Square in Latakia city.
Tartous Governor Ahmed al-Shami criticized the Alawite religious leader Ghazal Ghazal for playing on people’s emotions to create chaos. He said the right to demonstrate is available to everyone as long as it does not lead to destabilizing the country.
