Makhous, a member of the Alawi community, stated in December 2011, "The fact that Alawites have never been able to voice their anger at the regime is not because they supported it but because they have been suppressed for more than 40 years". He said that Alawis "have been the most affected by the brutality of Assad's regime," that Alawis participated in protests against the Bashar al-Assad government in Baniyas and Jableh and that Alawis "all have to declare that the Syrian regime does not represent them and that they condemn its brutality against the Syrian people. This is of vital importance for the Alawite community and for national unity in general."[4]