Opposition fighters gesture as they check a Syrian army jet after they took over a military airbase near the central city of Hama.
Syrian civil war LIVE updates: The Syrian opposition forces now have control of the capital city of Damascus, with President Bashar al-Assad ‘fleeing’ the country to an undisclosed location, media reports said. The Syrian rebel forces said that Damascus was now free of the ‘tyrant Bashar al-Assad’, announcing a “new era for Syria”.…Read More
Syrian opposition forces also reportedly freed all the detainees from Damascus’ notorious Sednaya jail, announcing an “end of the era of tyranny in the prison of Sednaya”.
Meanwhile, Syrians toppled the statue of Assad’s father, Hafez, in Damascus and marked the end of the Assad family’s 50-year-long rule in the country.
Early on Sunday, the rebels announced that they have gained full control over the key city of Homs, striking a major attack on President al-Assad’s 24-year-long rule. Celebrating their victory, rebels fired in the air and several other took down the Syrian president’s posters.
Notably, the Syrian rebel forces, led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), managed to captured four key cities, Daraa, Quneitra, Suwayda and Homs, in just one day.
Syria civil war | Key points
- The Syrian rebels launched an attack on the country’s government headed by President Bashar al-Assad on November 27.
- It soon began breaching the cities, with the Syrian military confirming rebels’ presence in the Aleppo city.
- Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, a breakaway faction of al-Qaeda, was the one who staged the surprise offensive on Aleppo.
- Reports of President Assad seeking Russia’s help in the civil war surfaced. This is because the Russian president Vladimir Putin’s interference in the Syrian civil war almost a decade ago worked in Assad’s favour.
- Iran also reportedly was trying to help back Syria by sending fighters to the war-torn country.
- Amid escalating tensions, India advised its citizens to avoid all travel to Syria until further notice, urging those present in the country to leave at the earliest.
- US President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday said that America should refrain from military action in Syria, as an insurgent offensive reached the suburbs of the capital city of Damascus. “This is not our fight,” he said.
- Syrian rebels captured four cities in a day, including the key city of Homs and President Assad’s birthplace, Daraa. The rebels have said that they are focusing on Damascus, the capital of Syria.
- Syrian rebels ‘enter’ and capture the capital city of Damascus, with reports saying that President Assad has fled the country to an unknown location.
- Syrian PM says he is ready to cooperate with any leadership the people choose and is ready to handover the government to the opposition forces in a smooth transfer. Till the official handover is completed, Syrian rebel chief has ordered his forces to not breach the public institutions in Damascus.
