The Alawites are an ethnoreligious group that live in different parts of the Middle East, particularly in Syria. They represent the last ghulat sect of Shia Islam.
The Quran is one of their holy books, but its interpretation differs significantly from Shia Muslim interpretations and aligns with early Batiniyya and other ghulat sects. Alawite theology and rituals differ sharply from Shia Islam in several important ways. For instance, various Alawite rituals involve the drinking of wine and the sect does not prohibit the consumption of alcohol for its adherents. As a creed that teaches the symbolic/esoteric reading of Qur’anic verses, Alawite theology is based on the belief in reincarnation and views Ali (al-Hadi) as a divine incarnation of God. Wikipedia
The Alawites suffered repression under Ottoman rule until the latter part of the empire. They later became governors and military leaders.
Syrian President for Life (but he ran away) Bashir al-Assad was an Alawite. It seems he wasn’t very loyal to his own however.
In the early days of the Syrian civil war, many Alawites felt compelled to back Assad, fearing that a rebel victory would lead to a slaughter of the Alawite community, especially as the conflict took on an increasingly sectarian cast. In May 2013, pro-opposition SOHR stated that out of 94,000 Syrian regime soldiers killed during the war, at least 41,000 were Alawites. Reports estimate that up to a third of 250,000 young Alawite men of fighting age has been killed in the war by 2015, due to being disproportionately sent to fight in the front lines by the Assad government. Wikipedia
Al-Assad fled Syria to Moscow and the arms of Vladimir Putin in December of 2024. Former al-Queda leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, who US President Donald Trump referred to as a “young attractive guy” miraculously stepped into power. Al-Sharaa’s forces immediately attacked the Alawites in Syria.
As of 17 March 2025, the UK-based independent monitoring group Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) reported that 1,084 people, including civilians and fighters, were killed in the clashes since 6 March. According to their documentation, at least 639 people, including civilians and disarmed combatants have been killed by forces aligned with the Syrian transitional government. Armed remnants of the former Assad regime were also responsible for the deaths of at least 231 civilians. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported that 1,614 civilians were killed by armed militias supporting the Syrian government between 6 March 2025 and 12 March 2025. Wikipedia
Since the takeover by Ahmed al-Sharaa Alawites, Palestinians, Syriac Christians and Druze have been attacked and murdered. Israeli forces struck Syrian forces and Damascus in response to Syrian military moves against these groups (Time).
Did you know? Ahmed al-Sharaa was imprisoned by US forces in Iraq for planting explosives while an al-Queda operative. He was released after 5 years.
Genesis 3:22 Now the Yhwh of the Elohim said, “Behold man has become like one of us, having the ability of knowing good and evil, and now, lest he stretch forth his hand and take also from the Tree of Life and eat and live forever. 23 And Yhwh of the Elohim sent him out of the Garden of Eden, to till the soil, whence he had been taken. 24 And He drove the man out, and He stationed from the east of the Garden of Eden the cherubim and the blade of the revolving sword, to guard the way to the Tree of Life.