A Syrian opposition struggle monitor and two senior military officers mentioned early Sunday that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has left the nation as rebels say they’d entered Damascus following a shocking advance throughout the nation, with residents of the capital reporting the sounds of gunfire and explosions.
Rami Abdurrahman of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights advised The Related Press that Assad took a flight from Damascus early Sunday. Reuters reported the identical factor, citing two senior military officers.
State tv in Iran, Assad’s fundamental backer within the years of struggle in Syria, reported that he had left the capital. It cited Qatar’s Al Jazeera information community for the data and didn’t elaborate.
There was no rapid official assertion from the Syrian authorities.
Syrian Prime Minister Mohammed Ghazi Jalali mentioned the federal government was able to “prolong its hand” to the opposition and hand over its features to a transitional authorities.
The civil struggle in Syria has reignited after years of mendacity dormant, with a coalition of opposition forces swiftly taking management of quite a lot of main cities. CBC’s Chris Brown breaks down how the scenario unravelled and the important thing gamers preventing for management.
“I’m in my home and I’ve not left, and that is due to my belonging to this nation,” Jalali mentioned in a video assertion. He mentioned he would go to his workplace to proceed work within the morning and known as on Syrian residents to not deface public property.
He didn’t handle reviews that Assad had left the nation.
An Related Press journalist in Damascus reported seeing teams of armed residents alongside the street on the outskirts of the capital and listening to sounds of gunshots. Town’s fundamental police headquarters gave the impression to be deserted, its door left ajar with no officers exterior.
One other AP journalist shot footage of an deserted military checkpoint the place uniforms had been discarded on the bottom below a poster of Assad’s face.
Residents of the capital reported sounds of gunfire and explosions. Footage broadcast on opposition-linked media confirmed a tank in one of many capital’s central squares, whereas a small group of individuals gathered in celebration. Calls of “God is nice” rang out from mosques.
It was the primary time that opposition forces reached the outskirts of Damascus since 2018, when Syrian troops recaptured the world following a years-long siege.
The professional-government Sham FM radio reported that the Damascus airport was evacuated and all flights halted.
The insurgents additionally introduced they’d entered the infamous Saydnaya navy jail north of the capital and “liberated our prisoners” there.
The night time earlier than, opposition forces had taken the central metropolis of Homs, Syria’s third largest, as authorities forces deserted it. Town stands at an necessary intersection between Damascus, the capital, and Syria’s coastal provinces of Latakia and Tartus — the Syrian chief’s base of help and residential to a Russian strategic naval base.
Sham FM reported that authorities forces took positions exterior Syria’s third-largest metropolis, with out elaborating. Abdurrahman, of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, mentioned Syrian troops and members of various safety companies have withdrawn from the town, including that rebels have entered elements of it.
The insurgency introduced later Saturday that it had taken over Homs. The seize of Homs is a serious victory for insurgents, who’ve already seized the cities of Aleppo and Hama, in addition to massive elements of the south, in a lightning offensive that started Nov. 27. Analysts mentioned Homs falling into insurgent palms can be a game-changer.
The rebels’ strikes into Damascus got here after the Syrian military withdrew from a lot of southern a part of the nation, leaving extra areas, together with a number of provincial capitals, below the management of opposition fighters.
Ought to Damascus fall to the opposition forces, the federal government would have management of solely two of 14 provincial capitals: Latakia and Tartus.
United Nations Secretary Basic António Guterres says after years of battle in Syria, it’s ‘excessive time’ for all events to have interaction significantly and chart a path to resolving the long-running disaster.
The advances prior to now week had been among the many largest in recent times by opposition factions, led by a gaggle that has its origins in al-Qaeda and is taken into account a terrorist group by america and the United Nations. As they’ve superior, the insurgents — led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group, or HTS — have met little resistance from the Syrian military.
The speedy insurgent beneficial properties, coupled with the shortage of help from Assad’s erstwhile allies, posed probably the most critical risk to his rule for the reason that begin of the struggle.
The UN’s particular envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, on Saturday known as for pressing talks in Geneva to make sure an “orderly political transition.” Talking to reporters on the annual Doha Discussion board in Qatar, he mentioned the scenario in Syria was altering by the minute.
Russian International Affairs Minister Sergey Lavrov, whose nation is Assad’s chief worldwide backer, mentioned he feels “sorry for the Syrian individuals.”
In Damascus, individuals rushed to replenish on provides. 1000’s rushed the Syria border with Lebanon, making an attempt to go away the nation.
Many outlets within the capital had been shuttered, a resident advised The Related Press, and people who remained open ran out of staples similar to sugar. Some outlets had been promoting gadgets at thrice the conventional worth.
The UN mentioned it was shifting non-critical employees exterior the nation as a precaution.
Assad remoted
Assad has had little, if any, assist from his allies. Russia is busy with its struggle in Ukraine. Lebanon’s Hezbollah, which at one level despatched hundreds of fighters to shore up Assad’s forces, has been weakened by a year-long battle with Israel. Iran has seen its proxies throughout the area degraded by common Israeli airstrikes.
U.S. president-elect Donald Trump on Saturday posted on social media that the U.S. ought to keep away from partaking militarily in Syria.
Pedersen mentioned a date for the talks in Geneva on the implementation of UN Decision 2254 can be introduced later. The decision, adopted in 2015, known as for a Syrian-led political course of, beginning with the institution of a transitional governing physique, adopted by the drafting of a brand new structure and ending with UN-supervised elections.
Later Saturday, international ministers and senior diplomats from eight key international locations — together with Saudi Arabia, Russia, Egypt, Turkey and Iran — together with Pedersen, gathered on the sidelines of the Doha summit to debate the scenario in Syria.
In a press release issued late Saturday, the contributors affirmed their help for a political answer to the Syrian disaster “that may result in the top of navy exercise and defend civilians.” Additionally they agreed on the significance of strengthening worldwide efforts to extend assist to the Syrian individuals.
The insurgents’ march
Abdurrahman, of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, mentioned insurgents had been within the Damascus suburbs of Maadamiyah, Jaramana and Daraya. Opposition fighters had been additionally marching from jap Syria towards the Damascus suburb of Harasta, he mentioned.
A commander with the insurgents, Hassan Abdul-Ghani, posted on the Telegram messaging service that opposition forces had begun the “last stage” of their offensive by encircling Damascus.
HTS controls a lot of northwest Syria, and in 2017 it arrange a “salvation authorities” to run day-to-day affairs within the area. In recent times, HTS chief Abu Mohammed al-Golani has sought to remake the group’s picture, slicing ties with al-Qaeda, ditching hard-line officers and vowing to embrace pluralism and spiritual tolerance.
Entrance Burner24:24Who’re the fighters reigniting Syria’s civil struggle?
In a sudden offensive, Turkish-backed insurgent forces in Syria have managed to take a number of villages and cities, together with the second largest metropolis within the nation, Aleppo, all with minimal resistance from authorities forces.
Now as they proceed to push additional south, Syrian president Bashar Al-Assad is left with a diminished military and his fundamental allies are embroiled in conflicts of their very own.
Kareem Shaheen is the Center East editor at New Traces Journal. He spoke to host Jayme Poisson about what the autumn of Aleppo and renewed preventing in Syria means for the Syrian individuals and the area.
For transcripts of Entrance Burner, please go to: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts [https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts]
The shock offensive started Nov. 27, throughout which gunmen captured the northern metropolis of Aleppo, Syria’s largest, and the central metropolis of Hama, the nation’s fourth-largest metropolis.
Opposition activists mentioned on Saturday {that a} day earlier, insurgents entered Palmyra, which is house to invaluable archeological websites that had been in authorities palms since being taken from the Islamic militant group ISIS in 2017.
To the south, Syrian troops left a lot of the province of Quneitra, together with the primary Baath Metropolis, activists mentioned.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights mentioned authorities troops have withdrawn from a lot of the 2 southern provinces.
The Syrian military mentioned in a press release on Saturday that it has carried out redeployment and repositioning in Sweida and Daraa after its checkpoints got here below assault by “terrorists.” The military mentioned it’s establishing a “sturdy and coherent defensive and safety belt within the space,” apparently to defend Damascus from the south.
The Syrian authorities has referred to opposition gunmen as terrorists for the reason that battle broke out in March 2011.
