Within the early hours of Sunday morning, opposition forces declared Syria liberated from the rule of President Bashar al-Assad as opposition forces surged into the capital.
The previous president in query reportedly fled Damascus, with no info but as to which nation will obtain him.
The beautiful collapse of greater than 53 years of al-Assad household rule has been described as a historic second – almost 14 years after Syrians rose in peaceable protests towards a authorities that met them with violence that shortly spiralled right into a bloody civil conflict.
Only a week in the past, the regime nonetheless maintained management over important parts of the nation. So how did all of it unravel so shortly?
When did it begin?
On November 27, a coalition of opposition fighters launched a serious offensive towards pro-government forces.
The primary assault got here on the entrance line between opposition-held Idlib and the neighbouring governorate of Aleppo.
Three days later, the opposition fighters took Syria’s second-largest metropolis, Aleppo.
Who did this?
Named Operation Deterrence of Aggression, this offensive was fought by a number of armed Syrian opposition teams led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and supported by allied Turkish-backed factions.
HTS – led by Abu Mohammed al-Julani – is the most important and most organised, having dominated the governorate of Idlib for years earlier than this offensive.
Different teams that took half within the operation have been the Nationwide Entrance for Liberation, Ahrar al-Sham, Jaish al-Izza and the Nour al-Din al-Zenki Motion, in addition to Turkish-backed factions that fall beneath the umbrella of the Syrian Nationwide Military.
Has all of Syria fallen?
Most likely. Though opposition fighters didn’t enter Lattakia and Tartous, coastal governorates – seen as al-Assad strongholds.
The rebels advanced quickly – inside days, they took Hama and Homs, a metropolis as soon as dubbed “Capital of the Revolution” throughout the early years of the conflict.
On Saturday, Deraa – the birthplace of the 2011 rebellion – also slipped from government control.
The Syrian military introduced it was “redeploying and repositioning” within the province and close by Sweida, however that appeared to return to nought.
The UK-based conflict monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), mentioned Syrian troops have been withdrawing from positions in Quneitra, close to the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights.
Why did al-Assad fall so quick?
Syria was struggling as its economic system tanked, reportedly propped up largely by a bootleg commerce within the psychoactive drug Captagon.
Al-Assad grew to become massively unpopular as folks discovered it more durable and more durable to outlive, together with his troopers, the vast majority of whom didn’t wish to battle for him.
Troopers and cops have been reportedly abandoning their posts, handing over their weapons, and fleeing forward of the opposition advance.
Militarily as properly, the al-Assad regime has been weak for years, counting on Russian and Iranian army assist to prop it up.
However, analysts say, Russia is slowed down in its invasion of Ukraine and Iran and their Lebanese ally Hezbollah have been broken by Israeli assaults – they may not come to the rescue of the faltering Syrian military.
The place is al-Assad?
No one is aware of the place al-Assad is but.
He and his Defence Minister Ali Abbas are each in unknown areas, in response to Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi al-Jalali, who advised Al Arabiya information web site that they’d misplaced communication on Saturday evening.
In line with SOHR head Rami Abdel Rahman, al-Assad left Syria through Damascus worldwide airport whereas it was secured by the military. Troopers deserted it shortly after and opposition fighters took management of it.
Has the entire authorities fled?
No, Prime Minister al-Jalali has stayed, talking to the press early on Sunday to say he had remained to ensure issues stored working.
Are Syrians glad?
Damascus, Homs and different Syrian cities erupted in celebrations because the departure of al-Assad was introduced.
Photos from Damascus captured opposition fighters firing into the air at dawn. Individuals climbed atop tanks in jubilation, amid crowds waving the flag of the revolution.
In some areas, folks toppled statues of al-Assad’s father, Hafez.
Crowds gathered to wish collectively in mosques and to rejoice in public squares, chanting anti-Assad slogans and honking automobile horns.
What occurred in Sednaya jail?
The opposition fighters have opened regime prisons alongside their advance, setting free the prisoners of conscience held inside.
HTS introduced that its fighters had stormed the jail on the outskirts of the capital, declaring an “finish of the period of tyranny within the jail of Sednaya”, a facility synonymous with probably the most infamous abuses of al-Assad’s regime.
SOHR confirmed that “the doorways of the notorious Sednaya jail … have been opened for hundreds of detainees who have been imprisoned by the safety equipment all through the regime’s rule”.
What occurs subsequent?
That continues to be to be seen.
Analysts level out that there’s a lot of potential for Syria, simply as there are a variety of potential pitfalls if the varied events don’t cooperate.
Al-Jalali mentioned in a video assertion that his cupboard is able to “prolong its hand” to the opposition and hand over its features to a transitional authorities.
“This nation is usually a regular nation that builds good relations with its neighbours and the world … however this challenge is as much as any management chosen by the Syrian folks,” al-Jalali mentioned in a speech broadcast on his Fb account.
HTS chief al-Julani mentioned in a press release on social media that “public establishments will stay beneath the supervision of the prime minister till they’re formally handed over”.
