Ali Koshmr, a 36-year-old man from Syria's Latakia, around 330 km from Damascus, woke up to the sounds of gunfire, tires screeching and dozens of armed men shouting, "Come out, you Alawite pigs, Nusayris!

Local television reports that the country's president has ordered the creation of an independent commission to investigate what happened, and the inquiry will be known within a maximum period of 30 days.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says 162 civilians were "executed" in a coastal region linked to ousted president Bashar al-Assad.

Once empowered by the regime, many Alawites now face reprisals from rebel factions and displaced Sunni populations who suffered under Assad's rule.

Syria has suffered its worst bloodshed since Bashar al-Assad was toppled from power, with more than 1,000 people reported killed in violence that has swept the coastal region since Thursday.

Syria's interim leader has appealed for unity, as violence and revenge killings continued in areas loyal to ousted former leader Bashar al-Assad on Sunday.Hundreds of people have reportedly fled their homes in the coastal provinces of Latakia and Tartus - strongholds of Assad support.

Syrian security forces deployed heavily in the Alawite heartland on the Mediterranean coast on Saturday, after a war monitor reported that government and allied forces killed more than 500 civilians

In a gripping report by Rizik Alabi for The Media Line, Syria is once again consumed by violence as fighting between pro-Assad rebels and government security forces intensifies in the coastal province of Latakia.