Syrians celebrate around the world as rebels topple Assad
Syrians in Berlin celebrate the end of Syrian dictator Bashar Assad’s rule after rebel fighters took control of the Syrian capital, Damascus, overnight.
The Russian foreign ministry said on Sunday that Bashar Assad had resigned from his position as Syrian president and left the country.
The ministry said Assad’s decision came after he held talks with “a number of participants of the armed conflict,” adding that he had called for a “peaceful transfer of power.”
Assad’s location remains unclear.
Syrian anti-government forces had announced early on Sunday morning that they had advanced into Damascus, Syria’s capital, and freed the city from Assad.
In a post on social media, rebel commander Hassan Abdul-Ghani said: “We declare Damascus free from the tyrant Bashar al-Assad.”
“Today 8-12-2024 Syria is officially free,” he added in a later post.
President-elect Donald Trump said on Truth Social on Sunday that Assad had “fled his country” after losing Russia’s support.
“Assad is gone,” Trump wrote. “His protector, Russia, Russia, Russia, led by Vladimir Putin, was not interested in protecting him any longer.”
President Biden and his team are said to be “closely monitoring the extraordinary events in Syria and staying in constant touch with regional partners,” White House National Security Council spokesperson Sean Savett wrote on X.
Several global leaders have reacted to Assad’s resignation, including Daniel Shapiro, the US deputy assistant secretary of defense for the Middle East.
“If confirmed, no one should shed any tears over the Assad regime,” he said, according to The Associated Press.
Shapiro said American military presence will continue in Syria “solely to ensure the enduring defeat of ISIS and has nothing to do with other aspects of this conflict,” he said.
In an X post, France’s President Emmanuel Macron wrote, “The barbaric state has fallen. At last.”
“I pay tribute to the Syrian people, to their courage, to their patience. In this moment of uncertainty, I send them my wishes for peace, freedom, and unity. France will remain committed to the security of all in the Middle East,” he said.
Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, called the resignation “a positive and long-awaited development.”
“It also shows the weakness of Assad’s backers, Russia and Iran,” Kallas said. “Our priority is to ensure security in the region. I will work with all the constructive partners, in Syria and in the region.”
Geir Pedersen, the UN’s Special Envoy for Syria, said in a statement, “Today marks a watershed moment in Syria’s history.”
He added, “The challenges ahead remain immense and we hear those who are anxious and apprehensive. Yet this is a moment to embrace the possibility of renewal. The resilience of the Syrian people offers a path toward a united and peaceful Syria.
The rebel march on Damascus is part of a surprise offensive launched by a coalition of opposition forces led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, which traces its origins to the Al Qaeda terrorist network.
The offensive, which began in late November, had already seen rebel forces take Aleppo, one of Syria’s largest cities, Hama, and the strategic city of Homs, which sits at an important crossroads linking Damascus to the coast.
Homs is the last major city on the road south to Damascus, and its fall would have effectively cut off the capital from the coastal stronghold of Assad’s Alawite sect.
The collapse of Assad’s government could have significant global implications, especially for Russia and Iran, which had been two of Assad’s strongest allies.
For Moscow, which operates two major military facilities in the country — the Hmeimim airbase and the Tartus naval base — Syria has offered its forces crucial access to the Mediterranean Sea and a base to launch operations into Africa.
Losing access to these bases would scupper many of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s plans in the region, Zineb Riboua, a research fellow and program manager at the Hudson Institute’s Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East, wrote on X. “Without a strong Russian military base in Syria, all of Putin’s plans collapse.”
While Russia intervened to prop up Assad in 2015, its priorities have since shifted to the war in Ukraine, and it had appeared reluctant to divert any significant resources to help Assad this time around.
The Russian embassy in Syria on Friday advised Russian nationals to leave the country “in the light of the difficult military and political situation” there.
Russia’s foreign ministry said on Sunday that there was currently no security threat to its military bases in Syria but that they were on high alert.
For Iran, Syria has been part of an important land corridor stretching from Tehran to Baghdad, Damascus, and Beirut, helping it support key regional proxies such as the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
“For Iran, Syria is absolutely essential in order to maintain its proxy network,” Natasha Hall, a senior fellow with the Middle East Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, previously told B-17.
But Tehran, too, has been distracted by its conflict with Israel, while Hezbollah has been left in disarray after Israel killed its longtime leader and wounded thousands of its fighters with exploding pagers and walkie-talkies.
“Russia and Iran are in a weakened state right now, one because of Ukraine and a bad economy, the other because of Israel and its fighting success,” Trump continued in his Truth Social post.
In a separate post on the platform on Saturday, Trump called on the United States to stay out of the situation in Syria, writing: “Syria is a mess, but is not our friend, & THE UNITED STATES SHOULD HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. THIS IS NOT OUR FIGHT. LET IT PLAY OUT. DO NOT GET INVOLVED!”
