The Syrian regime’s security forces recently arrested eight Alawites citing their intention to leave the country. Before their final release, they faced criminal charges and their passports and papers were confiscated. This was considered as a message to the Alawite youth: leaving Syria is a red line you should never cross.
Migration Know-how Spreads
In a striking development, cities in the Syrian coastal area are witnessing an exodus of young Alawites. Urban centers in Tartous, Jablah, and Lattakia turned into forums for dozens of people to exchange information on emigration routes while the regime imposes stringent laws to prevent emigration.
Ramiz, a graduate of the Faculty of Engineering of Tishreen University, became an important source of information for those seeking to flee Syria. “I receive dozens of calls every day from young men preparing to leave because I have been recognized for my wide and accurate knowledge of shifting emigration routes. Some of them contact me daily through various messengers. I do not rely on a single messenger and never trust anyone because everyone knows that the regime’s intelligence service eavesdrops on phone conversations originating from the Syrian coastal areas; the government understands the threat it faces. They do not approve our departure simply because they need victims to die at the fronts,” said Ramiz.
“I am leaving with more than 100 people by the end of this month. We are currently preparing all the necessary mobile applications, chargers, and gloves to breach and cut barbed wire,” Ramiz added.
In Search for Survival
A group of young men told Al-Souriah Net: “We now live in a gigantic prison and our names are already on the death list at recruitment centers. Our families encourage us to leave before we turn into mere numbers on coffins that return to the coastal cities every day. We are studying all possibilities that are available, including how to cross the border while keeping our equipment and the dream of reaching a European country.”
An Alawite doctor from Lattakia said: “The regime and its media have played all their cards to control the Alawite sect, including arousing loyalty and fabricating news by celebrating false victories. The regime, however, left several armed factions to their fate despite the pleas from Alawite families who saw their sons captured and killed – like what happened at Tabah military airbase and the 17th Brigade in Raqqa and what is happening now at Kweres military airbase which has been besieged for months.”
“People organized several sit-ins in Tartous to implore the regime to save their sons, after which they realized that the regime does not care about the lives of the soldiers. It is only natural that Alawite youths are looking for chances to survive. Against the odds that await them on the emigration routes, they have made their choice: do not get embroiled in the Syrian massacre,” the doctor said.
The doctor pointed out that the Syrian opposition should pay attention to this development and use it as political means to pressure the countries that support the regime on the pretense of protecting minorities.
Al-Souriah Net learned from reliable sources that members of the regime’s security appratuses now rely on members of the People’s Assembly and village elders with strong ties with intelligence officers in a desperate attempt to use religious propaganda as a means to prevent the Alawite youth from emigrating and to encourage them to join the pro-regime militia.
This article was translated and edited by The syrian Observer
