Known as Assad's stronghold: HTS launches operation in Latakia

In Syria, the Military Operations Administration affiliated with HTS has begun a 'security' operation targeting the Qardaha district, the hometown of the Assad family, in the western province of Latakia. The forces conducting the operation had not shown resistance against Israel's occupation of Quneitra, located 20 kilometers from Damascus.

The operation was carried out after former regime elements in Latakia who did not surrender their weapons showed resistance to HTS and Israel.

According to the Syrian News Agency (SANA), a large number of security forces participated in the operation launched by the Military Operations Administration in the Latakia countryside.

According to information obtained by AA from security sources within the Military Operations Administration, helicopters also supported the operation in Qardaha. Some individuals alleged to be 'elements remaining from the former regime' were captured during the operation.

Qardaha, the hometown of the Assad family, was known as the stronghold of the former regime.

The port city of Latakia in western Syria. The Arab press reports that HTS has not been able to fully take control of Latakia and its surrounding areas.

CLAIMS THAT THOSE WHO WENT TO RECONCILIATION CENTERS 'DISAPPEARED'

Following the collapse of the Assad dictatorship on December 8, 2024, the new administration issued a general amnesty and opened reconciliation centers in many provinces, asking elements of the ousted regime to surrender their weapons by a certain deadline.

According to reports in the foreign press, some individuals who surrendered to the reconciliation centers disappeared. Families and relatives of the missing persons began organizing protests in front of the reconciliation centers, and security forces affiliated with HTS intervened against the protesters.

The HTS administration in Damascus had previously conducted similar large-scale operations in the provinces of Latakia, Tartus, and Homs against former regime elements who did not accept the calls for reconciliation and refused to surrender their weapons.

News Source: AA