Alawi

Blood splatter above the bed of Safwan Shebli, 23, who was killed by opposition groups during an August 4th offensive in Barouda village, northern Syria; photo taken September 8, 2013.

Syrian rebel forces are guilty of atrocities, too

Conflict & Justice

Most of the reports of atrocities in the Syrian civil unrest have been blamed on the Syrian government forces. Now,Human Rights Watch has documented some of the worst incidents of the war – executions, indiscriminate killing and kidnappings – and says the rebel forces are the culprits.

A Syrian Alawite girl who has just arrived in Istanbul from Aleppo, Syria, is sheltering with her family at the Pirsultan Abdal Cemevi.

Fleeing rebels, desperate Syrians find refuge among Istanbul’s Alevis

Conflict & Justice

Clashing Perspectives From Syria’s Coastal City of Latakia

Conflict & Justice

Tensions rising in Turkey over Syrian refugees

Syrian Alawite defector lives life stuck between two worlds

High-ranking Syrian general defects as opposition group meets in Paris

Brig. Gen. Manaf Tiass became the highest-ranking military official to defect from Syria when news spread that he was on his way to Paris Friday. Is his departure a sign of what’s to come as President Bashar Assad continues his violent crackdown on dissent?

In one of Turkey’s most religiously diverse provinces, close ties with Syria fuel support for Assad regime

In Turkey, the civil strife in Syria has meant refugees streaming across the border. In mostly-Muslim Turkey, most Turks are staunchly on the side of the Sunni Muslims trying to overthrow Assad rule. But in Hatay province, a former Syrian province and one of the most diverse provinces in the country, more people support Assad, perhaps than anywhere outside of Syria.

The World

Syria’s War Arrives in Tripoli, Lebanon

Arts, Culture & Media

The northern city of Tripoli has seen clashes that echo what’s going on in Syria. In some cases, the fighting in Tripoli pits one neighborhood that supports the Syrian government against one that backs the Syrian rebels.

The World

As Syrian Refugees Flee into Turkey, Tensions with Local Community Rise

Conflict & Justice

The influx of Syrian refugees is taking a toll on the Southern Turkish town of Antakya, where many Syrian families and activists have settled.

Syrian Alawite Defector in Limbo

Conflict & Justice

A Syrian Alawite defector fled his country and joined the rebels in Antakya, Turkey. Now, he is shunned by his Alawite community back home, and the rebels don’t entirely trust him.