Alawites prepare as IS, Jabhat al-Nusra close in on regime areas
Supporters of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad long dismissed the threat from the Islamic State, but that threat has become real as jihadists move into the Homs countryside, approaching Alawite and Christian areas.
TARTOUS, Syria — Supporters of the Syrian regime seemed to be more reassured last year, as regime forces had been advancing, retaking the lead in many regions, especially along the coast. The emergence of the Islamic State (IS) and the progress it made at the expense of the opposition, declaring the establishment of an Islamic caliphate in June, did not cause much fear in the ranks of the regime’s supporters.
However, concerns increased as IS started waging battles against government forces in Raqqa province and in the eastern countryside of Homs, while different brigades, including Jabhat al-Nusra, have been advancing in the Hama countryside, closing in on Al-Ghab plain, which is seen as the eastern gate to the Alawite areas in the mountains of the Syrian coast.
In the Alawite-majority coastal city of Tartous, people are still leading normal lives, as they are not greatly affected by the turn of events. However, many of the region’s young men continue to perish in battles. Nevertheless, security measures have recently been noticeably tightened, with security patrols deployed on main crossroads at night, in addition to checkpoints where cars are stopped to verify the identities of drivers and to make sure they own the vehicles they are driving.
A citizen in the area said: “The authorities have concerns about car bombs and the infiltration of IS fighters into the city,” while others downplayed the role of these patrols and mobile checkpoints, with one person saying, “They have been deployed to detect car-theft gangs, which have recently increased.”
