Syria imposes curfew in port city after sectarian violence

Security forces in Syria imposed a curfew on Latakia city, a bastion of the country's Alawite community on its coastline in the west, state media reported on Tuesday.

The move follows two days after four people were killed in nighttime protests that spiralled into sectarian violence.

State media also reported that 21 people allegedly linked to the ousted government of former President Bashar Assad. A television report described those arrested as "former regime remnants who are involved in criminal acts, sectarian incitement and targeting internal security forces."

Syrian media reported that the curfew would be in force from 5 p.m. local time on Tuesday (1400 UTC/GMT) until 6 a.m. the following morning.

This followed protests on Monday evening during the funeral of the one of the victims killed in demonstrations on Sunday. The Latakia Health Directorate said four people were killed and 108 injured in the unrest.

Thousands of Alawite protesters had gathered on Sunday in Azhari Square in Latakia city to demand a decentralized political system and the release of thousands of Alawite prisoners.

This led to counterprotests from members of the Sunni community in the city.

Sunni Muslims make up around 74% of Syria's population, while Alawites make up around 10%.

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Latakia city's population is majority Sunni, but the port is home to an above-average number of Alawites, who are thought to be in the majority in the rural areas of the wider Latakia province.

Since the ousting in December last year of Assad, himself an Alawite, the minority group has been the target of attacks. Hundreds were killed in the coastal regions where they mostly reside in March.

Syrian President Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa has sought to assure the domestic population and international community that all ethnic and religious minorities will be allowed to coexist in peace under his nascent government's rule.

But given al-Sharaa's past as the leader of Islamist terrorist organizations like the al-Nusra Front during Syria's long-running internal conflict under Assad, minority groups like Alawites, Druze and Kurds have voiced skepticism in such assurances.