Syria's New Leaders Grapple with Uprising and Calls for Justice After Bloody Clashes

Syria's New Leaders Face Uprising and Calls for Justice

Following the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad in December, Syria's new Islamist rulers are facing a violent uprising from loyalists of the deposed leader. The clashes, which have already claimed over 1,000 lives, mostly civilians, have prompted calls for justice and accountability from both within Syria and the international community.

Interim President Ahmed Sharaa has vowed to hunt down the perpetrators of the violence and hold them accountable. He has also accused remnants of the former regime and foreign powers of trying to incite unrest and drag the country into a civil war.

The top commander of a Syrian Kurdish armed group has blamed Turkish-backed Islamist factions for some of the most disturbing violence, including the reported executions of civilians belonging to Assad's Alawite sect. Turkey has not yet responded to the allegation.

The United States and Russia have asked the UN Security Council to meet behind closed doors to discuss the escalating violence in Syria. Sharaa's office has also announced the formation of an independent committee to investigate the clashes and killings by both sides.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor reports that the death toll from the clashes is one of the highest since a chemical weapons attack by Assad's forces in 2013. The United States and UN human rights chief Volker Turk have called on Syria's interim leadership to bring the perpetrators to justice.

The violence has also sparked revenge killings against Alawites, an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam that is the faith of some of Assad's most ardent supporters. The attacks have been blamed on unruly armed militias who came to help the security forces.

A resident of the town of Qadmous told Reuters that people in the town and surrounding villages had fled to nearby fields to protect themselves. He said a convoy of fighters with tanks, heavy weapons, and small drones had burned homes and cars along the main road near his town.

The Damascus authorities are sending reinforcements to beef up their security presence in the mountainous Latakia province, where thick forests in rugged terrain are helping the anti-government fighters.