Overview
- The Interior Ministry announced an overnight curfew in Latakia from 5pm Tuesday to 6am Wednesday after attacks in predominantly Alawite neighborhoods.
- The Defence Ministry said army units with tanks and armoured vehicles were deployed to Latakia and Tartous to restore stability.
- Casualty figures from Sunday’s unrest are disputed, with SOHR reporting two people killed by security forces and state outlets and local officials citing three to four dead and about 60 wounded.
- Protests were called by Alawite cleric Ghazal Ghazal and featured demands for protection, detainee releases and political federalism, while authorities blamed violence on “remnants of the defunct regime” and “outlaw groups.”
- The demonstrations followed the Dec. 26 bombing at an Alawite mosque in Homs that killed eight and wounded 18; Saraya Ansar al‑Sunna claimed responsibility, investigators say devices were planted, and no arrests have been announced.