Syria's Sharaa urges insurgents to surrender after deadly clashes

Syria's leader Ahmed al-Sharaa has urged insurgents from ousted president Bashar al-Assad's Alawite minority to lay down their arms and surrender after the fiercest attacks on the war-torn country's new rulers yet.

The warning came as Syria's security forces "executed" 162 Alawites on Friday, according to a Syrian war monitor, in a massive operation in the ethnic group's Mediterranean heartland triggered by deadly clashes with gunmen loyal to Assad the day before.

"You attacked all Syrians and made an unforgivable mistake. The riposte has come, and you have not been able to withstand it," Sharaa said in a speech broadcast on Telegram by the Syrian presidency.

"Lay down your weapons and surrender before it's too late."

More than 250 people have been killed since the clashes erupted on Thursday along the country's western coast, which followed other deadly incidents in the area this week, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Restoring security has been one of the most complex tasks for Syria's new authorities, installed after Islamist-led forces ousted Assad in a lightning offensive in December.

In his Friday address, Sharaa, who headed the coalition that forced out Assad, also vowed to keep working towards "monopolizing weapons in the hands of the state".

"There will be no more unregulated weapons," he pledged.

Western powers and Syria's neighbors have emphasized the need for unity in the new Syria, which is seeking funds for reconstructing a nation ravaged by years of war under Assad.

- 'Premeditated' -

The Britain-based Observatory said "five separate massacres" left 162 civilians dead, including women and children, in Syria's coastal region on Friday.

"The vast majority of the victims were summarily executed by elements affiliated to the Ministry of Defense and the Interior," both under the Islamist-led authorities' control, the rights group said.

The Observatory and activists released footage showing dozens of bodies in civilian clothing piled outside a house, with blood stains nearby and women wailing.

Other videos appeared to show men in military garb shooting people at close range.

AFP could not independently verify the images.

The United Nations envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, decried "very troubling reports of civilian casualties".

He called on all sides to refrain from actions which could "destabilize Syria, and jeopardize a credible and inclusive political transition".

An interior ministry source quoted by official news agency SANA said isolated incidents had occurred on the coast and pledged to put a stop to them.

Authorities launched a sweeping security operation after Thursday's clashes, which the Observatory said left 78 people dead, including gunmen, security force members and civilians.

Mustafa Kneifati, a security official in Latakia, said pro-Assad militia fighters carried out "a well-planned and premeditated attack" on government forces' positions and patrols around the coastal town of Jableh.

- Curfews -

A curfew was imposed until Saturday in the coastal provinces of Latakia and Tartus, heartland of the ousted president's Alawite religious minority, and authorities on Friday announced a security sweep in the Jableh area, between the two provinces.

Officials blamed "sabotage" for a power outage that affected much of Latakia province.

A curfew has also been imposed in Syria's confessionally divided third city Homs.

The security operation "targeted remnants of Assad's militias and those who supported them", an official cited by SANA said, as he called on civilians to stay in their homes.

"All night, we heard the sounds of gunfire and explosions," said Ali, a farmer living in Jableh, describing the urban battles in his area.

"Everyone's afraid... we are trapped at home and we can't go out."

- 'Under attack' -

Earlier in the week, the Observatory reported four civilians killed in a security operation in the Latakia area, where state media had said "militia remnants" supporting Assad killed two security personnel in an ambush.

"Both sides feel like they're under attack, both sides have suffered horrific abuses at the hands of the other side, and both sides are armed," Syria expert Aron Lund, a fellow at the Century International think tank, told AFP.

Forces led by Sharaa's Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham launched the offensive that toppled Assad on December 8, when he fled to Russia with his family.

Syria's new security forces have since carried out extensive campaigns seeking to root out Assad loyalists from his former bastions.

During those campaigns, residents and organizations have reported executions and other violations, which the authorities have described as "isolated incidents".

Russia, Assad's main backer that helped turn the tide of the war in his favor before he was toppled, called on Syrian authorities to "put an end to the bloodshed as soon as possible".

Iran, another major ally of Assad, said it strongly opposes "harming innocent Syrian people from any group and tribe".

Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Turkey have reaffirmed their support for the new authorities, while Jordan condemned "attempts to drive Syria toward anarchy".

The United Arab Emirates also condemned the attacks by armed groups against Syrian security forces.

Germany meanwhile urged Syria's authorities to avoid a "spiral of violence".

The 57-member Organization of Islamic Cooperation on Friday readmitted Syria, which was suspended in 2012, early in the civil war under Assad, following the long-time ruler's toppling.

"This decision represents an important step towards Syria's return to the regional and international communities as a free and just state," a Syrian foreign ministry statement said.