My column* this week in The National
discusses the carnage in the Syrian coastal area of Banias over the weekend
committed by pro-regime militias, probably led by a Turkish man called Mihraç
Ural. Ural is known for activists in the area. He leads a militia, called the
Syrian Resistance. He has recorded messages to the Syrian rebels warning them
against taking the fight to President Bashar Al Assad's heartland.
It
does seem that the regime is carrying out acts of sectarian cleansing. The
purpose of these acts, however, is not to pave the way for a potential Alawite
state as some have suggested, but for other reasons entirely. For more on the
dynamics in the coastal region to explain the motives behind those serial
massacres, read the full article
Also
with him in the video, the man with the mustache on the right and the
tall religious leader on his right. The lighting in the video makes it
difficult to identify the faces of the other militiamen. Activists point to him
as the perpetrator of this week's carnage. If true, he is a vicious sub-human
who seems to be deliberately taking photos with Alawite religious leaders.
Also, as far as I know, this is the first time Alawite religious leaders associate themselves so openly with pro-regime informal militias that carry out acts of sectarian cleansing. The religious leaders, however, seem to be there for photo opportunity as they did not speak or comment. There are numerous photographs and videos of him making similar statements of indiscriminate killing against the "traitors", which implies being opposed to the regime regardless whether they are fighters or civilians.
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