In a stunning fall, President Bashar al-Assad of Syria has fled to Russia, state media there and two Iranian officials said yesterday, after he lost his hold on power to a lightning fast offensive by rebels. The main group in the rebel coalition, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, announced that its fighters had taken the capital.
The al-Assad family had ruled Syria with an iron fist since the early 1970s, and many citizens greeted the president's fall with hope after long living in fear of their oppressive government. Deep uncertainty over who will rule Syria next raised worries of a possible power vacuum, even as celebratory gunfire crackled around Damascus.
Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, the Islamist rebel leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham who spearheaded the rebel offensive, declared the group's achievement a victory for the whole Islamic nation. Once linked to Al Qaeda, his group has tried to gain legitimacy by eschewing jihadist ambitions and by focusing on organized governance.
Our hearts are dancing with joy, one Damascus resident said. We can't predict the future and anything is possible, but the most important thing is we got rid of this oppressive regime.
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