Special to WorldTribune.com

NICOSIA — Sunni rebels, reinforced with anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons, have swept through the enclave of Syria’s ruling Alawite minority.

Sunni rebels have moved through the coastal Syrian province of Latakia. The opposition said Islamist militias captured at least 11 Alawite villages near the coastal city of Latakia, home of Assad’s family.

“At least 20 rebels and 32 fighters loyal to Assad have been killed,” the opposition Syrian Observatory of Human Rights said.

The offensive was said to have begun on Aug. 4 and reached the outskirts of Latakia, which contains a Syrian Navy base that includes Russian Navy
personnel. Syrian Observatory said thousands of Alawites fled their homes for safety in Latakia.

The rebels were said to have fired BM-21 Grad rockets as well as mortars in the offensive. The militias that participated in the campaign included the Al Qaida-aligned Al Nusra Front for the Defense of the Levant and the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant.

During the fighting, rebels captured a leading Alawite cleric close to
the Assad family. The cleric was identified as Badr Eddine Ghazal, who would
be held hostage in any prisoner exchange with the Damascus regime.

“He will probably be swapped with some of the female prisoners held by
Hilal Assad in Latakia’s Sports City,” rebel spokesman Amar Hassan said.

The opposition said the rebel sweep was meant to prevent the regime from
establishing an Alawite-dominated enclave along the Mediterranean Sea. The
offensive, which included the renewal of operations in northern Syria, was
expected to be joined by the Western-backed Free Syrian Army.

“FSA’s entry into the coastal region is something required to prevent
the regime from establishing a sectarian canton and [thus] restore balance
with the regime forces in [Latakia],” Monzer Makhous, an envoy of the
opposition Syrian National Coalition, said.

The opposition has also reported the renewal of widespread desertions
from Assad’s military and security forces. Opposition sources said Druse
fighters assigned to the Iranian-financed Popular Committees abandoned their
positions near Damascus. The Assad militia has been deployed throughout the
suburbs of the Syrian capital and on Aug. 7 62 rebels were said to have been
killed in an ambush.

“At least 62 rebels fell as martyrs, most of them youths, and eight
others are missing after an ambush by regime forces at dawn near the
industrial city of Adra,” Syrian Observatory said.

  Al Nusra Front, Alawite heartland, Badr Eddine Ghazal, Bashar Assad, Islamic State of Iraq and Levant, Syrian Observator for Human Rights, Syrian rebels capture 11 villages near Assad’s hometown