Anti-`Alawite bigotry

Even the murder and mutilation of innocent `Alawites is justified in the Western press.  Why this attempt to conflate between the regime and the `Alawite community, many members of which don't support the regime.  Remember that in the late 1970s, many--if not most--`Alawites were opposed to the Syrian regime but the sectarian anti-`Alawite murder rampage by the Ikhwan and their affiliates forced the `Alawites to close ranks.  "But based on interviews with witnesses on both sides of the divide and a medical worker who tracked the violence and collected the bodies, it appears that the tensions soared after a crowd of Alawites armed with sticks surrounded a mosque in a Sunni neighborhood shortly before the noontime prayers on Friday and began chanting anti-Sunni slogans.  Sunnis responded by abducting three Alawites and on Saturday, their bullet-ridden bodies were found dumped in a Sunni neighborhood of the city. Alawites went on a rampage, looting and burning Sunni shops."