Syria’s transitional leader Ahmad al-Sharaa vowed on Sunday to pursue those responsible for the violent clashes between militants allegedly affiliated with ousted President Bashar al-Assad and the country’s new security forces, emphasizing that anyone who exceeds their authority will be held accountable.

The clashes, which have entered their fourth day in Syria's coastal cities, have resulted in 1,000 deaths, mostly civilians, according to a war monitoring group.

In a nationally televised speech also shared on social media, al-Sharaa—whose Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group led the offensive that ousted al-Assad in December—accused al-Assad's loyalists and unnamed foreign powers of seeking to destabilize Syria.

"Today, as we stand at this critical moment, we find ourselves facing a new danger - attempts by remnants of the former regime and their foreign backers to incite new strife and drag our country into a civil war, aiming to divide it and destroy its unity and stability," al-Sharaa stated.

"We will hold accountable, with full decisiveness, anyone who is involved in the bloodshed of civilians, mistreats civilians, exceeds the state's authority or exploits power for personal gain. No one will be above the law," he added in the video speech.

Al-Sharaa calls for national unity

Earlier on Sunday, al-Sharaa urged for national unity as the situation in the coastal towns of western Syria worsened, with local sources reporting widespread executions by pro-government armed forces. 

During morning prayers at a mosque in Damascus' Mazzeh, broadcast by Syrian television, al-Sharaa said, "What is happening in Syria now is one of the expected challenges ... We must preserve national unity and civil peace in the country, we have the opportunity to live together."

He expressed confidence that Syria will be able to cope with the challenges, as it "has the potential for survival."

"We have to preserve national unity and domestic peace, we can live together," al-Sharaa said.

The Syrian presidency announced later on Sunday that a seven-member "independent committee" had been formed to investigate events on its Mediterranean coast following an outbreak of violence. Syrians have circulated graphic videos of executions by militants. 

The committee will "investigate the violations against civilians and identify those responsible for them," the presidency said in a statement posted on Telegram, adding that the perpetrators would be referred to court.

Armed factions attack villages in Latakia and Tartous

Local sources told Al Mayadeen on Sunday that armed factions are attacking several villages, including Ta'neena, al-Hataniyeh, and al-Jawwar in Tartous, as well as al-Ramilah and al-Naqaa in the Jableh countryside of Latakia.

Al Mayadeen's correspondent reported that the massacres have spread to the countryside of Hama and parts of Homs, noting that over 10 massacres have been committed since Saturday in villages across Latakia, Tartus, Hama, and Homs.

He stated that around a thousand civilians have been killed in massacres carried out by armed groups described as "undisciplined."

The Syrian Ministry of Interior announced that the General Security Department is deploying additional reinforcements to the Qadmus area in Tartous countryside to "maintain security."

A source in the Syrian Ministry of Defense told SANA that intense clashes erupted near the village of Bataanita in the Latakia countryside, forcing "many elements affiliated with the former regime to flee." Meanwhile, telecommunications and internet services were disrupted in Daraa and Sweida after cables connecting Daraa to Damascus were severed, according to SANA.

هذا المشهد يؤكد عدم وجود معركة اصلا في الساحل السوري وإنما تصفيات على الهوية.
عنصران من جماعة الجولاني يتجولان بأمان في احدى القرى على دراجة نارية وكأنهما في نزة بحثا عمن تبقى من احياء لقتلهم.

يلمحان رجلا عجوزا يقول احدهم مبتسما كمشتك وينزل من على الدراجة بأريحية ويقتله بدم بارد pic.twitter.com/NNN1y4bNB4

— محمد البخيتي(Mohammed Al-Bukhaiti) (@M_N_Albukhaiti) March 8, 2025

State news agency SANA reported that "deposed regime remnants" launched an attack on a national hospital in Latakia, which was repelled by security forces.

Al-Sharaa urged insurgents on Friday to "lay down your weapons and surrender before it's too late." Western powers and Syria’s neighbors have stressed the importance of unity in rebuilding a nation devastated by war.