Syria's Alawites are secretive, unorthodox sect

PARIS (Reuters) - The clannishness, secrecy and tenacity of Syria's power elite around President Bashar al-Assad are hallmarks of the enigmatic Alawite faith that unites its members and arouses suspicion among the majority Sunnis. An oppressed minority for most of their history, Alawites suddenly took control in Syria in 1970 when Assad's father Hafez staged a coup that sidelined the Sunnis. He ...