Katz slams Syria’s Islamist rulers amid bloody crackdown on Alawite insurgency

Defense Minister Israel Katz hits out at Syria’s Islamist rulers as they move to crush a nascent insurgency by fighters from ousted president Bashar al-Assad’s Alawite sect.

“[Abu Mohammed] al-Julani switched his robe for a suit and presented a moderate face,” Katz says in a statement, using the nom de guerre of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa. “Now he’s taken off the mask and exposed his true face: A jihadist terrorist of the al-Qaeda school who is committing horrifying acts against a civilian population.”

“Israel will defend itself against any threat from Syria,” Katz adds, while vowing the military will continue working to keep southern Syria demilitarized.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, more than 130 people have been killed in two days of violence in the coastal region of western Syria, which is heavily populated by the members of the Alawite minority.

They include at least two dozen male residents of the Alawite town of Al Mukhtareyah killed by gunmen on Friday, the Observatory and two Alawite activists say, citing contacts in the region and video footage from the scene.

Syrian authorities say the violence began when remnants loyal to ousted leader Assad launched a deadly and well-planned attack on their forces on Thursday.