**ISTANBUL**
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa said Sunday that recent security incidents in the country’s coastal region are “under control,” terming them as “expected challenges.”
"The crisis has passed safely," Sharaa said after attending the dawn prayer at a mosque in the Al Mezzeh district of Damascus as shown by a video shared on social media.
“What is happening in the country are expected challenges. We must preserve national unity and civil peace among Syrians,” he stressed.
“We are capable of living together in this country as much as possible,” he added.
In recent days, the coastal provinces of Latakia and Tartus have seen heightened security tensions amid coordinated attacks by loyalists of the former Assad regime. These attacks – described as the most severe since the regime’s fall in December – targeted security patrols, checkpoints, and hospitals, resulting in deaths and injuries.
In response, security and military forces launched sweeping operations to track down the attackers. The operations have led to fierce clashes, as government officials assert that the situation is moving toward full stability.
Assad, Syria’s leader for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia on Dec. 8, ending the Baath Party’s regime, which had been in power since 1963.
Sharaa, who led anti-regime forces to oust Assad, was declared president for a transitional period on Jan. 29.
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