Syria opposition forces have declared that the 24-year rule of President Bashar al-Assad has come to an end, hours after fighters entered the capital, Damascus, following a lightning advance across the country.
The stunning opposition advance came after 13 years of brutal war, putting an end to more than half a century of the rule of the al-Assad family.
The Syrian war started as a largely unarmed uprising against al-Assad in March 2011, but morphed into a full-blown war that dragged in foreign powers, killed hundreds of thousands of people and turned millions into refugees.
In a statement broadcast live on Syrian national television on Sunday, December 8, 2024, a group of fighters said that the “tyrant al-Assad has been toppled” and that all prisoners have been freed from a major prison facility in Damascus.
The opposition said that al-Assad, whose family ruled Syria for more than 50 years, had fled the capital. His whereabouts remain unknown.
In a statement, Russia’s foreign ministry later said that al-Assad had resigned from the presidency and left Syria without saying where to.
In a video statement, Syrian Prime Minister, Mohammad Ghazi al-Jalali asserted that the government was ready to “extend its hand” to the opposition and turn its functions over to a transitional government.“I am in my house and I have not left, and this is because of my belonging to this country,” al-Jalili said in a video statement.
He said that he would go to his office to continue work in the morning and called on Syrian citizens not to deface public property.
At the same time, Abu Mohamed al-Julani, head of the main fighting group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, ordered opposition fighters to not attack any public institutions and services.
Earlier on Sunday, fighters entered the heart of the capital, announcing a “new era” free of revenge and inviting Syrians overseas to return.
Opposition forces had already seized the cities of Aleppo and Hama, as well as large parts of the south, in a lightning offensive that began on November 27, 2024.
Hadi al-Bahra, who heads the Syrian political opposition coalition overseas, declared Damascus “free of al-Assad” and congratulated the Syrian people.
Joyous celebrations erupted in Damascus and other parts of the country, including along the border with neighbouring Lebanon, with many displaced Syrians deciding to return home.
World Reacts To Al-Assad’s Ouster
Reacting to the incident, UN Envoy to Syria, Geir Pedersen, said, “What is important is that we are able to find a situation where there is a political way out of this.”
“And that political way needs to be very different from what it has been before, it needs to be a process that is inclusive of everyone, and where we really focus on the need for unity, stability, where Syria is able to restore its sovereignty and its territory. There are lots of wounds that need to be healed.”
Geir Pedersen
Egypt called on all parties in Syria to preserve the capabilities of the state and national institutions.
The country’s foreign ministry said that it was following the situation with great care, affirming its support for the Syrian people and the country’s sovereignty and unity.
Also, the EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas said in a post on X that the end of al-Assad’s dictatorship is a positive and long-awaited development. “It also shows the weakness of al-Assad’s backers, Russia and Iran,” Kallas noted.
She added that the bloc’s priority was to “ensure security” in the region and pledged to work with “all the constructive partners” in Syria and more broadly across the area.
“The process of rebuilding Syria will be long and complicated and all parties must be ready to engage constructively.”
Kaja Kallas
Moreover, Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu hailed the fall of al-Assad, a major ally of Iran, as an “historic day” and said it was a direct result of blows dealt to Hezbollah and Iran by Israel.
He said that Israel has seized a buffer zone in the Golan Heights established by a 1974 ceasefire agreement with Syria after Syrian forces abandoned their positions.
“We will not allow any hostile force to establish itself on our border,” he added.
Other countries, such as France, Iran, the Philippines, Italy, Lebanon and Qatar reacted to the news.
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