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The push comes as Syria's new de facto leader, Ahmed al-Shara, meets Bahraini and Libyan delegations in Damascus.
Syria's new administration is waging a security crackdown on what it describes as “remnants” of the former of President Bashar al-Assad as a rule, operations are conducted in several parts of the country.
The official Syrian news agency SANA reported on Saturday that authorities were conducting a “large-scale clean-up operation” near the city of Latakia on Syria's northwestern coast.
The crackdown – in an area where al-Assad enjoyed support from the Alawite community – came in response to “reports of (the presence of) elements linked to remnants of Assad's militias,” SANA said in a post shared on social media.
Reporting from the capital Damascus, Al Jazeera's Hashem Ahelbara explained that the new administration has said it is not targeting the Alawite community, from which al-Assad hails.
Instead, officials said the security operation focused on Syrian army soldiers and officials linked to al-Assad and his brother Maher al-Assad, an influential former military commander.
“They say (they) have given these people an ultimatum to hand over weapons to the new administration,” Achelbara said, adding that operations were also underway in Homs, Aleppo and the outskirts of Damascus.
Push comes days after 14 police officers were killed in what authorities said was an “ambush” by forces loyal to al-Assad in Tartus province, another area on Syria's west coast.
Interior Minister Mohammed Abdul Rahman vowed on Thursday to take action against “anyone who dares to undermine Syria's security or endanger the lives of its citizens.”
Syrian opposition groups led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) took control of the country earlier this month after a swift offensive that overthrow al-Assad after more than two decades in power.
A political transition is underway, with Syria's new de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa – who headed HTS and previously had ties to al Qaeda – holding talks with a number of Arabic and Western diplomats in recent days.
Several countries have called on al-Sharaa to ensure that religious and ethnic minorities are protected amid some recent tensions and concerns that any unrest could negatively impact Syria and the wider region.
“What happens next in Syria will not only have an impact on the Syrians themselves, but may spread outside the country,” Al Jazeera's Achelbara said. “That's why people are concerned about what happens next.”
Al-Sharaa, also known as Abu Mohammed al-Julani, met with a Bahraini delegation in Damascus on Saturday, as well as a senior official from Libya's UN-recognized government.
“We expressed our full support for the Syrian authorities in the success of the important transitional phase,” Libyan Minister of State for Communications and Political Affairs Walid Elafi told reporters after the meeting.
“We emphasized the importance of coordination and cooperation … especially on security and military issues,” Elafi said, while the two also discussed cooperation “related to energy and trade” and “illegal immigration.”
Meanwhile, Lebanese officials and a military monitor said Lebanon expelled approximately 70 Syrian officers and soldiers on Saturday, returning them to Syria after they crossed into the country illegally through unofficial routes.
Many senior Syrian officials and people close to al-Assad's family fled the country to neighboring Lebanon after al-Assad was ousted on December 8.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a London-based monitor, said Syrian military personnel of various ranks had been turned back through the northern Arida crossing into Lebanon.
SOHR and a Lebanese security official told Reuters that the returnees were detained by the new Syrian authorities after crossing the border.
