DAMASCUS, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Syria's interim administration initiated a security campaign in rural Damascus on Thursday, alongside an operation targeting armed groups in the coastal province of Tartus, local media Al-Watan Online reported.

The campaign targeted neighborhoods including Qudsaya, al-Hameh, Ash al-Warour, Jabal al-Ward, and Hay al-Wuroud in the countryside of Damascus.

Officials said the operation aimed to "comb the area" by confiscating illegal weapons and detaining individuals identified as "instigators of discord," Al-Watan said.

Meanwhile, in Tartus, authorities announced they had "neutralized" several fighters, whom they referred to as the "remnants of Assad's militias" in wooded areas and on hilltops. The report indicated that operations have been ongoing to apprehend additional fugitives.

The crackdown came as part of a series of security initiatives nationwide, aimed at consolidating the new leadership's authority.

It also came a day after protesters took to the streets in Tartus, Latakia, Homs, and Damascus, condemning the alleged attacks on a religious shrine belonging to the Alawite minority.

Security officials insist that such incidents are isolated and warn that remnants of the former regime may be exploiting sectarian divisions to sow discord. Enditem

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