WMohammed Abdul-Hamid al-Awwad was a Syrian brigadier general who was assassinated in Damascus during the Syrian Civil War. The official Syrian government news agency disclosed that he was killed by armed men, who also wounded his driver in the attack.
WKenji Goto was a Japanese freelance video journalist covering wars and conflicts, refugees, poverty, AIDS, and child education around the world. In October 2014, he was captured and held hostage by Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants after entering Syria in the hopes of rescuing Japanese hostage Haruna Yukawa. On 30 January 2015, he was beheaded by his captors following the breakdown of negotiations for his release.
WMohammed Rafeh was a Syrian actor popular around the Arab world. He was notable for his role as Ibrahim in the popular Syrian television series Bab Al-Hara.
WDawoud Abdallah Rajiha, forename sometimes transliterated Dawood or Daoud, surname sometimes transliterated Rajha, was the Syrian minister of defense from 2011 to July 2012 when he was assassinated along with other senior military officers by armed opposition forces during the country's Civil War. From 2009 to 2011, Rajiha served as chief of staff of the Syrian Army.
WAssef Shawkat was the deputy Minister of Defense of Syria from September 2011 until his death in July 2012.
WHasan Ali Turkmani was a prominent Syrian military commander and Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party member. He was born to a Turkish family and served as the minister of defense in Syria from 2004 to 2009.
WBeginning in 2014, a number of people from various countries were beheaded by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a radical Sunni Islamist group operating in Iraq and parts of Syria.