Gunmen kill 10 members hailing from Assad’s community in Syria

"Gunmen in Syria massacre 10 Alawite citizens, sparking fears of sectarian violence in post-Assad era."

Gunmen in Syria have shot dead 10 people in a "massacre" in a village home to members of ousted President Bashar al-Assad's Alawite minority, a war monitor said on Saturday, February 1, 2025.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Friday's attack killed "10 citizens in Arzah village in the northern Hama countryside, which is inhabited by citizens of the Alawite sect".

The Britain-based monitor, which has a large network of sources on the ground in Syria, said gunmen "rapped on the doors of houses in the village and shot at people using handguns equipped with silencers" before fleeing.

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Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said a child and an elderly woman were among the victims. He said the gunmen "were Sunni Muslims, and the attacks bear all the hallmarks of sectarian killings".

Syrian newspaper Al-Watan, quoting a security source in Hama, said security forces "are surrounding the Arzah area to hunt the criminals" behind the killings.

It said "former officers and soldiers" were among those who died in the attack.