Syrian Intelligence Announces Arrest of “Mihraç Ural,” Accused of Involvement in the Baniyas Massacre
ARK News.. The General Intelligence Service has arrested Ali Kayyali, known as “Mihraç Ural,” who is accused of playing a leading role in the 2013 Baniyas massacre, while allegedly attempting to flee across the border.
The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported on Thursday, October 15, 2026, that the General Intelligence Service announced Ural’s arrest as he attempted to leave Syrian territory. No further details were provided.
The agency added that Ural had formed an armed militia that fought alongside forces of the former regime in suppressing the Syrian people during the years of the revolution. The militia was accused of committing several massacres in different areas, most notably the massacres of al-Baydha and Ras al-Nabaa in Baniyas.
Militias affiliated with Ural were also accused of carrying out massacres against Syrians in the countryside of Latakia, Aleppo, and Idlib, resulting in hundreds of deaths and injuries.
According to Anadolu Agency, Ural is the main suspect in the twin terrorist bombings that struck the town of Rayhaniya in Turkey’s southern Hatay province in 2013, killing 52 people.
On October 4, Syrian security forces arrested Jamal Tarablsi, Ural’s deputy.
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