Syrian forces say they killed Assad-era officer

Syrian security forces said on Aug. 30, 2026, that they killed Firas Abdul Karim Hammoud, an army commander under ousted ruler Bashar al-Assad, during a raid on a hideout in Safita, in Tartus province.

The forces said Hammoud opened fire during the operation, triggering a firefight. They said he had also opened fire on security personnel during an earlier attempt to arrest him.

In their statement, the forces said Hammoud had served as a commander of special forces in the 25th Division under Assad. They accused him of working with former Assad-era general Ghiath Dalla to lead pro-Assad groups on Syria's coast after Assad's fall.

They also accused Hammoud of involvement in armed insurrection operations against state institutions that killed security personnel.

Syrian authorities have arrested dozens of security officials from Assad's rule since his fall in December 2024, and trials began in April. Dalla, a former Fourth Brigade officer, announced last year on social media the formation of a military council for the liberation of Syria.

That announcement came before violence erupted on the Syrian coast in March 2025. Authorities accused armed Assad supporters of sparking the violence by attacking security forces. A national commission of inquiry said at least 1,426 members of the Alawite minority were killed, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights put the toll at more than 1,700.

The Alawite community, to which Assad's family belongs, has been the target of several episodes of violence since Assad's ouster. Damascus has said all communities will be protected, but Syria's minorities remain wary under the new Islamist authorities.