Clashes between Islamists who took control of Syria and supporters of ousted President Bashar Assad's government killed two Islamist fighters on Wednesday and wounded others, according to interim officials.
Details of how the fighting broke out and who instigated the clash were not immediately known. Acting officials in Syria said two fighters were killed by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, who led the stunning offensive that toppled Assad earlier this month.
Syria's transition has been surprisingly smooth, but it has only been a few weeks since Assad fled the country and his administration and forces faded away. The insurgents who toppled Assad have their roots in a fundamentalist Islamist ideology, and while they have promised to create a pluralist system, it is unclear if or how they plan to share power.
Since Assad's fall, dozens of Syrians have been killed in acts of revenge, according to activists and observers, the vast majority of them from the minority Alawite community, a branch of Shiite Islam to which Assad belongs.
In the capital Damascus, Alawite protesters clashed with Sunni counter-protesters and gunshots were heard. The Associated Press could not confirm details of the shooting.
Alawite protests also occurred along the Syrian coast, in the city of Homs and in the countryside of Hama. Some called for the release of former Syrian army soldiers now imprisoned by HTS.
The Alawite protests were apparently sparked in part by an online video showing the burning of an Alawite shrine. The provisional authorities insisted that the video was old and was not a recent incident.
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Sectarian violence has erupted in bursts since Assad's overthrow, but nowhere near the level feared after nearly 14 years of civil war that killed an estimated half a million people. The war fractured Syria, created millions of refugees and displaced tens of thousands across the country.
This week, some Syrians who were forcibly displaced began slowly returning to their homes, trying to rebuild their lives. Shocked by the devastation, many discovered that few remains of their homes remained.
In the northwestern region of Idlib, residents were repairing shops and sealing damaged windows on Tuesday, trying to regain a sense of normality.
The city of Idlib and much of the surrounding province has for years been under the control of the HTS, led by Ahmad al-Sharaa, formerly known as Abu Mohammed al-Golani, once aligned with Al Qaeda, but has been the scene of relentless attacks. . attacks by government forces.
Hajjah Zakia Daemessaid, who was forcibly displaced during the war, said returning to her home in the Idlib countryside was bittersweet.
“My husband and I spent 43 years of hard work saving money to build our house, only to find out it was all wasted,” said the 62-year-old.
In the dusty neighborhoods cars passed by with luggage tied on top. People stood idle in the streets or sat in empty cafes.
In Damascus, new Syrian authorities raided warehouses on Wednesday and confiscated drugs such as Captagon and cannabis, used by Assad's forces. One million Captagon pills and hundreds of kilograms (pounds) of cannabis were set on fire, interim authorities said.
Albam reported from Damascus, Syria, and Alsayed from Idlib, Syria.
© 2024 The Canadian Press