Syrian authorities said they had killed a commander who served under President Bashar al-Assad after he opened fire on security forces who came to arrest him in the west of the country, Agence France-Presse reported.
Firas Abdul Karim Hammoud, commander of the 25th Division's special forces, was "neutralized (…) after an armed clash and an operation to search his hideout in the town of Safita", in Tartus province, the security forces said in a statement, BTA reported.
As in a previous arrest attempt, he opened fire on security forces who returned fire, according to the same source.
After the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, authorities have arrested dozens of security officials. Their trials began in April.
Hamoud is accused of acting under the command of General Ghiat Dalla, the leader of pro-Assad regime groups along the coast after late 2024. He is also accused of participating in "armed insurgent operations" against state institutions that led to the deaths of security forces.
Ghiat Dalla announced the creation of the "Military Council for the Liberation of Syria" last year, opposing the government.
Shortly after that, deadly violence targeting the Alawite minority, to which Bashar al-Assad belongs, erupted along the Syrian coast in March 2025. Authorities have accused supporters of the former president of fueling the violence by attacking security forces.
This has led to the deaths of more than 1,700 people, mainly Alawites, in clashes between security forces and supporters of the former president, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. A national commission of inquiry has found at least 1,426 dead, mostly civilians.
The Alawite community has been repeatedly targeted by violence since the fall of Bashar al-Assad. Despite assurances from the Islamist authorities, who took power in late 2024, that all communities will be protected, the country's minorities remain wary, AFP notes.