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Syrian rebels stated they’d entered Damascus on Sunday as President Bashar al-Assad’s regime appeared to break down within the face of the insurgents’ beautiful offensive throughout the nation.
The rebels stated in an announcement that “town of Damascus is free from the tyrant Bashar al-Assad” and that “Assad has fled”.
The whereabouts of Assad had been unclear, with experiences that he had fled, which might carry an ignominious finish to a household dynasty that has dominated Syria for greater than 50 years.
The downfall of the Assad regime would additionally usher in a interval of giant uncertainty for Syria, a nation shattered and fragmented after 13 years of civil conflict, and for the broader area. The nation shares borders with Israel, Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon.
Rebels stated they’d gained full management of the strategic metropolis of Homs within the early hours of Sunday.
On Saturday, they stated they’d taken over Deraa, the birthplace of the Syrian revolution in 2011, and the cities of Suwaida and Quneitra.
The insurgent offensive has been led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an Islamist motion that was confined to Syria’s north-west province of Idlib earlier than starting its offensive 12 days in the past. The group, which was as soon as an affiliate of al-Qaeda, rocked the nation by seizing Aleppo, Syria’s second metropolis, inside 48 hours after which marching southwards in direction of the capital.
It has been co-operating with Turkish-backed rebels who function underneath the umbrella of the Syrian Nationwide Military, however Syria is house to myriad factions and the diploma of co-ordination between all of them is unclear.
There was no official assertion by the Syrian presidency, the navy or state media concerning the Assad or the state of affairs within the nation. Al-Ekhbaria, a state-run TV channel, was broadcasting pre-recorded footage of Syrian structure set to gentle guitar music.
Assad, a London-trained eye physician, has dominated Syria since 2000, when he succeeded his late father Hafez Assad. The civil conflict broke out in 2011 after his forces brutally sought to place down a preferred rebellion.
He managed to cling to energy with the backing of Iran, Iranian-backed militants and Russia, which supplied important air energy.
However he presided over a hollowed-out, bankrupt state, and even many amongst his personal Alawite group appeared to have given up on the regime after years of battle and financial hardship.
When HTS mounted its offensive on November 27, regime forces appeared to soften away, whereas Russia, Iran and Hizbollah, the Lebanese militant motion, had been all weakened and distracted by their very own conflicts.
Different rebels captured areas south of Damascus over the weekend, encircling the capital as Iran reportedly pulled folks out of Syria.
The insurgent success is a humiliating blow to Iran and Russia. Moscow had gained entry to air and naval bases on the Mediterranean after intervening within the conflict.
Russia’s overseas minister Sergei Lavrov had stated on Saturday that Moscow would stand by its ally and was “attempting to do every part to not enable terrorists to prevail, even when they are saying they’re now not terrorists”.
In the meantime, Tehran’s help for Assad had given it a “land bridge” throughout Iraq to Syria and Lebanon, house to its most vital proxy, Hizbollah.
There might be enormous uncertainty about what comes subsequent in Syria. HTS is designated a terrorist organisation by the US, the UN, Turkey and different powers, whereas its chief Abu Mohammad al-Jolani has a $10mn American bounty on his head.
Lately, Jolani has sought to rebrand the group as a extra average Islamist motion, build up an autocratic, centralised motion with a decent grip on Idlib, which is house to 3mn to 4mn folks.
The rebels stated they’d freed prisoners from the infamous Sadnaya jail, which had develop into a logo of the Assad regime’s brutal repression of its political opponents.
On Saturday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who has lengthy backed some Syrian opposition forces, hailed “a brand new diplomatic and political actuality in Syria”.
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