Ahead of the submission of findings by the fact-finding committee, established on 9 March 2025 to investigate the killings of civilians on Syria’s northwest coast, to President Ahmad al-Sharaa, Kristine Beckerle, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa said:
“President al-Sharaa must commit to publishing the full findings of the fact-finding committee’s investigation into the mass killings targeting Alawite civilians in coastal areas and ensure that those responsible are brought to justice. Victims and the public have the right to be informed of the methodology used in this process and the committee’s conclusions.
“Survivors and the families of victims have the right to know what happened, who was responsible, and what concrete steps the authorities will take to deliver justice. Only independent and impartial investigations can lead to credible and fair trials. The President must also ensure that effective reparations are provided to survivors and affected families.
“Following the massacre, the President pledged to hold perpetrators accountable ‘with all fairness and without leniency.’ Now is the moment to fulfil that promise and demonstrate to the Syrian people that the authorities are committed to preventing communities from being targeted on the basis of religion or political affiliation and to bring to court those who commit targeted killings. Ensuring truth, justice, and reparation for the violations committed against Alawite communities and other minorities is an essential part of ending impunity and preventing further abuse.”
Background to the escalation in violence and killings
On 6 March 2025, armed groups affiliated with the former government led by President Bashar al-Assad launched multiple coordinated attacks on security and military sites in the coastal governorates of Latakia and Tartous. In response, the Ministry of Defense and Ministry of Interior, backed by supporting militias, launched a counteroffensive, leading to a significant escalation of violence.
In April 2025, Amnesty International called on the authorities to investigate the killing of hundreds of civilians in the coastal area as war crimes. Militias affiliated with the government, killed more than 100 people in the coastal city of Banias alone on 8 and 9 March 2025. The organization investigated 32 of the killings, and concluded that they were deliberate, unlawful, and specifically targeted the Alawite minority sect.
In June 2025, Reuters reported that around 1,500 Alawites had been killed, in 40 distinct sites, during the violence.
Header image: A woman reacts next to one of the pictures of victims of a recent wave of sectarian violence targeting Syria’s Alawite minority in the west of the country along the Mediterranean sea coast, during a protest condemning the attacks in Syria’s northeastern city of Qamishli on March 11, 2025. Photo by DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP via Getty Images.
