Clashes occurred in western Syria involving supporters of Assad.

Fourteen members of the Syrian Ministry of Interior have died, and ten others were injured as a result of an ambush set by forces loyal to the ousted regime of Bashar al-Assad.

This was reported by "Radio Free Europe" , citing representatives of the new Syrian authorities led by former rebels.

According to their information, the clashes occurred on December 24 near the Mediterranean port of Tartus in western Syria.

The security forces were ambushed while attempting to arrest a former officer in connection with his involvement in the Sednaya prison near Damascus, where thousands of people deemed disloyal to Assad's regime have been tortured and executed for decades.

The UK-based "Syrian Observatory for Human Rights" reported that three militants were also killed during the clashes.

As reported by Ukrinform, over 25,000 Syrians have returned home from Turkey since the uprising by the Islamist group "Hayat Tahrir al-Sham" led to the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime.

Illustrative photo: AA