A new map shows just how dramatically the murderous regime of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad collapsed in just days as rebel forces advanced in lightning strikes and seized power.
The now-exiled president, who has enforced a brutal crackdown on opposition forces for the past 13 years, appeared to be maintaining control of capital Damascus only last week.
Yet as jubilant critics of Assad’s brutal regime have been celebrating today his abrupt departure from office – and the country – it has now emerged how swiftly his fall came about.
While conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza had come to dominate global attention in recent years, it appears Syria’s rebel groups had been preparing for the perfect moment to strike.
Syrian rebel forces launched a quickfire offensive from the northwest on November 27, surging out of Idlib province and overwhelming unprepared government troops who are said to have retreated en masse.
And last weekend the rebels, spearheaded by Islamist militant organisation Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), seized full control of Aleppo city – the capital of the country’s most populous governorate – before marching south toward the city of Hama.
Thousands poured into the streets of Homs last night as pro-regime troops fled, with rebels freeing thousands of detainees from the city prison as security forces left in haste after burning their documents.
And now intense sounds of shooting were heard in the centre of Damascus, two residents said on Sunday, as rebels were making their way towards the capital.
Residents of numerous Damascus districts turned out to protest Assad on Saturday evening, and security forces were either unwilling or unable to clamp down.
One resident said the city was on edge, with security forces on the streets and many shops running out of staple foods.
The Syrian army withdrew from much of the country’s south on Saturday but later said itinsisted was fortifying positions in the Damascus suburbs and in the south.
Yet Syrian government forces have now abandoned the key city of Homs after less than a day of fighting, leaving Assad’s 24-year rule dangling by a thread.
Thousands of residents in Homs were seen dancing and chanting ‘Assad is gone, Homs is free’ and ‘Long live Syria and down with Bashar al-Assad’.
Youths tore down posters of the Syrian president, whose territorial control has collapsed in a dizzying week-long retreat by the military.
The fall of Homs and threat to the capital pose an immediate existential danger to the Assad dynasty’s five-decade reign over Syria and the continued influence there of its main regional backer, Iran.
Homs’ capture is also a powerful symbol of the rebel movement’s dramatic comeback in the 13-year-old conflict.
This is how the situation across Syria looked less than a week ago
A rebel fighter gestures in Homs countryside, after Syrian rebels pressed their lightning advance and later took control of the city
Western officials have claimed that Assad’s government could fall within the next week
HTS, the group leading the rebel offensive in Syria, is a powerful Islamist organisation that has maintained de facto control of Idlib for several years.
The group, led by Abu Mohammad al-Julani, solidified in 2017 as a conglomeration of various Islamist factions but traces its roots to al-Qaeda.
HTS’ core component arose from a group once known as Jabhat al-Nusra – al-Qaeda’s Syrian branch – but later sought to reposition itself as a legitimate Syrian nationalist organisation.
It officially severed ties with al-Qaeda and created a civilian arm known as the ‘Salvation Government’ through which it seeks to govern in Syria, insisting it has no ambition to expand beyond the nation’s borders.
Initial reports from civilians in Aleppo have appeared to suggest that HTS militants have treated inhabitants well after ousting Syrian government forces.
But there are suspicions that HTS’ jihadist origins remain and it is still designated a terrorist organisation by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), the US, the UK and the EU.
HTS is largely fighting alongside the Syrian National Army (SNA), which is a coalition of rebel groups supporting what was previously called the Free Syrian Army (FSA) – the group of Syrian defectors that broke off from government forces.
The SNA is quietly supported by Turkey, which is also said to have a cautious agreement with the HTS – though the latter’s jihadist origins prevent it from striking a relationship with Ankara.
Rebel fighters stand on a military vehicle in Homs countryside, after Syrian rebels pressed their lightning advance on Saturday
People in Damascus topple a statue of Hafez al-Assad and wave a Druze flag as rebel forces approach the capital, on December 7
Al-Golani, the main rebel leader, called this weekend’s capture of Homs a historic moment and urged fighters not to harm ‘those who drop their arms’.
He also said in a separate statement that rebels were on the cusp of taking the whole country and ‘the end of the criminal regime is near’.
Seizing Homs, an important crossroads between the capital and the Mediterranean, effectively cuts off Damascus from the coastal stronghold of Assad’s minority Alawite sect, and from Russia’s air and naval base.
The Syrian army and security commanders left Homs on Saturday by helicopter for the coast while a large military convoy withdrew by land, a senior army officer said. Rebels said they were entering the city centre.
The country’s state news agency denied reports that Assad had already fled to Russia, insisting he continued to govern from Damascus.
However, following the statement claiming it was ‘false news’, a source has told CNN that Assad was ‘nowhere to be found’ at his usual residences in the capital.
Lebanon said it is closing all its land border crossings with Syria except for a main one that links Beirut with Damascus.
Jordan closed a border crossing with Syria because of the security situation on the Syrian side.
Residents in Hama set ablaze a large banner bearing a picture of Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad hanging on the facade of a municipal building
Local residents celebrate after opposition forces led by HTS (Hayyet Tahrir al-Sham) took control of Hama city center and surrounding villages on December 6
Rebel forces pressing a lightning offensive in Syria aim to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad’s rule, their Islamist leader said in an interview published on December 6
Meanwhile, Assad’s allies Russia, Iran and Lebanese miilitant group Hezbollah have indicated no signs of intervening.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told CNN that Turkey wishes that neighbouring Syria can ‘quickly attain the peace and tranquillity it has longed for’ during 13 years of civil conflict.
He said: ‘I want to say this openly: We do not have our eyes on land — not even a pebble — that belongs to another country.’
Charles Lister, director of the Syria and countering terrorism and extremism programs at the Middle East Institute, told Bloomberg that Assad’s future has ‘never looked more fragile’.
