Members of Syria’s Alawite minority in the Latakia region, once a stronghold of the Assads in Syria, claim to be pleased the family‘s reign has been ended, but many fear reprisals from the incoming jihadist-led regime. Alawism is an offshoot of Shia Islam that believes in a kind of trinity that has incarnated multiple times. Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the former al-Qaeda franchise that took control of Damascus on December 8, is Sunni and regards the Alawites as heretics.
Fabrice Balanche, from France’s University Lumière Lyon 2, estimates the Alawite population to be approximately 1.7 million, about nine percent of Syrians. The community’s historical ties to the Assad family, serving as its “Praetorian Guard,” are raising fears the Sunni majority will exact collective revenge on them under HTS.
HTS, originating from the Al-Nusra Front, a former Al-Qaeda franchise, is claiming it will tolerate non-Sunni communities by pledging to protect their rights. However, it has targeted the Druze and other religious minorities in the past. Within Syria, many Alawites have sought refuge in areas like Latakia, where their numbers are greater, fearing past violence might recur. Many told the AFP that they or their relatives and associates hope to leave the country altogether. “I can see the comments online saying ‘Your turn is coming’ or ‘We will kill you’,” said one Alawite university student in the country.
Alawite religious leaders have requested amnesty and safe return assurances for all displaced individuals.
In the early stages of the rebel offensive, the United Nations (UN) warned that renewed hostilities could cause 1.5 million Syrians to migrate, with many likely to end up in Western countries. Around a million, mostly Sunni Syrians, migrated to Europe during the 2015-16 migrant crisis, with family chain migration eventually swelling their numbers to around 4.5 million. […]
— Read More: thenationalpulse.com
