HOMS, SYRIA – Sectarian clashes in Syria’s third largest city of Homs leads to at least 30 deaths.
- A group of Alawi men were reported missing on Thursday. Their bodies were found mutilated on Saturday and Sunday.
- Head of Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Rami Abdelrahman, reports that the fighting between groups was elevated when the relatives of kidnapped pro-government supporters received their corpses.
- In response to the murders, some Alawi residents had set ablaze, robbed, and destroyed Sunni-owned businesses as a form of retaliation.
- Homs consists of a diverse religious population of Sunni Muslims, Christians, and Alawites—President Bashar al-Assad and many of the ruling party’s sect.
- Since the mid-March protests, violent disputes throughout the country have increased between pro-regime supporters, anti-regime protesters, and armed forces. Human rights groups report the civilian death toll has risen to 1,400.
Original sources: AFP; Al Jazeera; BBC; NPR; Seattle Post Intelligencer.
Analysts available for comment:
Paul Sullivan is a professor of economics at National Defense University and adjunct professor of Security Studies and Science, Technology and International Affairs at Georgetown University. He is an internationally recognized expert on Islamic societies, the politics and economics of the Middle East, North Africa, and some parts of Sub-Saharan Africa.
CONTACT: paul.sullivan@theglobalexperts.org
Location: North America
Languages: English
Abdallah Schleifer is a veteran journalist who has covered the Middle East for American and Arab media for more than thirty years. He is currently Professor Emeritus at the American University in Cairo.
CONTACT: abdallah.schleifer@theglobalexperts.org
Location: Middle East
Language: English
René Guitton is an author of books, theater and television scripts. Along with his day job, this relentless traveler with a degree in journalism, who studied theology and exegesis, is currently doing research on today’s major monotheistic religions, on philosophy and various schools of thought.
Contact: rene.guitton@theglobalexperts.org
Location: West Europe
Languages: English; French
Jillian York is a Boston-based writer, researcher, and activist whose work focuses on a range of issues related to freedom of expression, with special emphasis on the Arab world.
Contact: jillian.york@theglobalexperts.org
Location: North America
Language: English
Marc Gopin is the director of the Center for World Religions, Diplomacy and Conflict Resolution (CRDC) at George Mason University’s Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution.
Contact: marc.gopin@theglobalexperts.org
Location: North America
Language: English
Metsa Rahimi is a security intelligence analyst at Janusian Security Risk Management. Her role involves political and security intelligence gathering and analysis, both in support of Janusian security operations and directly for clients around the world.
Contact: metsa.rahimi@theglobalexperts.org
Location: West Europe
Languages: English; French; Spanish
Abdulaziz Sachedina is a professor of religious studies at the University of Virginia and is an expert in interfaith relations and religious affairs, especially related to Islam.
Contact: abdulaziz.sachedina@theglobalexperts.org
Location: Middle East; North America
Languages: Arabic; English; French
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