Since the beginning of the protest movement, Syria's government has insisted that one of the main reasons for its nationwide military crackdown on dissidents is to protect minority groups from "armed terrorists" within the country's majority Sunni Muslims.

However, a seemingly increasing number of Christians and Alawites - members of the same sect as the family of President Bashar al-Assad - have joined the uprising and accuse the government of trying to sew sectarian strife to stay in power.

Al Jazeera's Jane Ferguson reports from the flashpoint city of Homs.