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Rebel forces in Syria launched a lightning offensive against the Army, ending 50 years of the Assad family’s rule as the President fled the country.
Bashar Al-Assad, a key Russia ally, was ousted by rebel forces on Saturday. (Reuters/ File)
The Kremlin on Monday confirmed that it provided political asylum to Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad after his government fell to rebel opposition forces led by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) on Saturday in a decisive conclusion to a decade-long civil war.
After a lightning advance of a militia alliance, Bashar Al-Assad fled to Russia, effectively putting an end to over 50 years of his family’s rule in the war-torn country. The HTS announced Sunday they had taken Damascus, prompting nationwide celebrations and a ransacking of Assad’s luxurious home.
Speaking to reporters, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that Assad had been given asylum in Russia, saying the decision was made by President Vladimir Putin. However, no meetings between Putin and Assad have been planned so far.
When asked about the fate of two strategically-important Russian military facilities in Syria, Peskov said it was premature to talk about it yet. “This is all a subject for discussion with those who will be in power in Syria,” he said, adding that there was “extreme instability” in the country.
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Earlier, Russian news agencies reported citing a source that Assad and his family had arrived in Moscow on Sunday after rebels took over Damascus, after reports claimed that his plane was shot down after taking off from the Damascus International Airport on Saturday night.
“Assad and members of his family have arrived in Moscow,” the source told the Russian news agencies. Assad family has been granted asylum by the Russian authorities on “humanitarian grounds”, the source added.
Russia had previously confirmed that Assad had resigned from the post of the President of Syria and left the country to an unknown destination. “As a result of negotiations between B Assad and a number of participants in the armed conflict in the SAR, he decided to leave the presidential post and left the country, giving instructions to transfer power peacefully,” the Russian foreign ministry had said in a statement.
Celebrations erupted around Syria and crowds ransacked Assad’s palace earlier today the HTS, formerly known as the Al-Nusra Front and affiliated with the terror group Al-Qaeda, along with allied factions, ended five decades of Baath party rule.
In his first public appearance after ouster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Sunday, the leader of Syria’s biggest rebel faction Abu Mohammed al-Golani hailed the fall of Assad as “a victory to the Islamic nation.”
Jolani while addressing , used his real name Ahmed al-Sharaa. He greeted the crowd amid cheering and chants of “Allahu akbar (God is greatest),” a video shared by the rebels on their Telegram channel showed.
Western countries hailed the fall of Assad government, which relied on Russian and assistance to maintain an ironclad control for over two decades. US President-elect Donald Trump said that the removal of Assad may be the “best thing that can happen” to the country which has long seen a civil war.
(with inputs from agencies)
