Alawites

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  Russia Pulling Back But Not Out Of Syria: Sources

  Russia is pulling back its military from the front lines in northern Syria and from posts in the Alawite Mountains but is not leaving its two main bases in the country after the fall of President Bashar al-Assad, four Syrian officials told Reuters.

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  The Rise Of Ba'ath Party And How It Solidified Its Hold On Syria

  Since Hafez al-Assad seized power in 1971, Syria's political structure has been dominated by three key pillars: the Ba'ath Party, the Alawite minority, and the Syrian Army.

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  Fall Of Assads: How An Alawite Family Ruled Over A Sunni Nation For Decades

  The Assads have ruled Syria for over half a century. Today, rebel forces have breached their seat of power Damascus, prompting President Bashar al-Assad to flee and effectively ending the family's rule over Syria.

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  What's Happening In Syria? 5 Big Developments As Rebels Take Over

  The Bashar al-Assad government has, by all means, fallen in Syria. The Sunni-majority country, rocked by a fierce rebellion against an Alawite ruler, now looks ahead for a new start after half a century.

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  5 Facts About Sunnis And Shiites That Help Makes Sense Of The Saudi-Iran Crisis

  The execution of Shiite cleric Nimr Baqr al-Nimr by Saudi Arabia has sparked a furor in the Middle East along sectarian lines. In Iran, the regional Shiite superpower, the Sunni embassy was ransacked and burned. The Saudi kingdom and a number of its Sunni allies have cut or downgraded diplomatic relations with Tehran. In a number of Sunni-majority ...

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  At Least 14 Killed In Bomb Blasts In Syria's Homs: Report

  At least 14 people were killed and dozens wounded in large bomb blasts today in the central Syrian city of Homs, state media reported.

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  Death Toll Rises to 22 in Attack on Syria Regime Bastion: Report

  The death toll from mortar fire today on Syria's coastal city of Latakia rose to 22, one of the bloodiest shellings there since the country's war began, state media reported.

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  Islamic State Fighters Dead in Failed Attack on Syria Alawite Town: Human Rights Group

  At least 19 Islamic State group fighters were killed today in a failed attack on an Alawite village in the central Syrian province of Homs, a monitor said

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  Islamic State Executes At Least 30 Civilians in Central Syria

  The extremist Islamic State group today executed at least 30 civilians, including two children, in a raid on a regime-held village in Syria's central province of Hama, a monitor said.

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  Suicide Bombers Kill Nine in Lebanon's Tripoli

  Two suicide bombers killed nine people and wounded 37 others in an attack on a cafe in a flashpoint Alawite neighbourhood of the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli Saturday, officials said.

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  Suicide Bomb Kills 7 in Alawite Quarter of Lebanon's Tripoli

  A suicide blast killed seven people and wounded 36 others in a flashpoint Alawite neighbourhood of the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli Saturday, a Red Cross official and the army said.

• Syrian Government Pushes into Border Town in Assad Coastal Heartland

  Syrian government forces have pushed into Kasab, a village on the border with Turkey and in the coastal heartland of President Bashar al-Assad's Alawite minority sect, a monitoring group and state media said.

• 30 dead in Lebanon Sunni-Alawite clashes

  Firefights in northern Lebanon between Sunni Muslims and Alawites -- the Shiite offshoot sect to which Syrian President Bashar al-Assad belongs -- have killed 30 people, a security source said on Saturday.

• Bomb explosions hit pro-Assad Damascus district

  Multiple bomb explosions on Wednesday hit a hilltop district in the Syrian capital Damascus populated by members of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's Alawite sect, witnesses said.

• Bomb attacks in Damascus, opposition says 15 dead

  Bomb explosions killed at least 15 people and wounded dozens on Tuesday in a Damascus district populated mostly by members of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's Alawite sect, opposition activists said.