The young man Murad Mahrez, who is from the Alawite sect, was killed on December 8, 2025, in the Yahudiya neighborhood of the city of Latakia in western Syria, after being directly shot by armed men, according to what was documented in a recorded video in which the victim appeared recounting what had happened moments before his death from his injuries.
Murad Mahrez, a young man from the Alawite sect in Latakia, was wounded by gunshots in the chest area while returning to his home, and he was transferred to intensive care before his death was announced as a result of his wounds.
According to Murad’s account in the video recorded immediately after he was wounded, someone asks him who shot you and why, and Murad replies, “Because I’m Alawite, isn’t that right?” Upon his confirming that he was Alawite, the gunmen proceeded to shoot him at close range, then fled, leaving him bleeding in the street.
The attack occurred on a day that witnessed a general strike in the cities and towns of western Syria, during which residents remained in their homes in response to the call of the head of the Supreme Alawite Islamic Council in Syria and the Diaspora, Sheikh Ghazal Ghazal, who announced a five-day strike (December 8–12, 2025).
The call for the strike coincided with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’s call to celebrate the anniversary of the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime and its assumption of power on the same date, which increased the general state of tension.
Following the announcement of the death of Murad Mahrez, widespread calls spread in the city of Latakia and its countryside for participation in his funeral, as an expression of solidarity with the victim and a protest against the incident, which was considered a sectarian-motivated targeting.
