Turkish President supports Syrian interim leader amid sectarian violence. Nearly 1,500 people, including over 1,000 civilians, were killed between Thursday and Saturday. Gunmen loyal to the interim government have been accused of retaliatory attacks against members of the Alawite sect, a minority group that held power under ousted leader Bashar al-Assad. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor, said security forces and allied factions were responsible for most civilian deaths in the Alwite-majority coastal region. The recent violence marks the worst unrest since al-Sharaa’s forces seized control of the country. It follows a deadly ambush on a security patrol, which authorities blamed on Alawites, which the government blamed on militants. It is not known whether the Turkish President will travel to Syria to meet with the Syrian President. He is expected to stay in the country until the end of the year, when he will travel back to Turkey for a meeting with the Prime Minister of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.