REBELS 'FREE' DAMASCUS, ASSAD FLEES

RUSSIA SAYS SYRIAN PRESIDENT HAS LEFT THE COUNTRY, REMAINS SILENT ON FUTURE

Syrian rebels declared they had ousted President Bashar al-Assad after seizing control of Damascus on Sunday, forcing him to flee and ending his family's decades of autocratic rule after more than 13 years of civil war.

In a seismic moment for West Asia, the Islamist rebels also dealt a major blow to the influence of Russia and Iran in Syria in the heart of the region - allies who had propped up Assad during critical periods in the war but were distracted by other crises recently.

The rebels said they had entered the capital with no sign of army deployments. Thousands of people in cars and on foot congregated at a main square in Damascus waving and chanting "Freedom" from a half century of Assad family rule, witnesses said. People were seen walking inside the Al-Rawda Presidential Palace, with some leaving carrying furniture from inside.

"We celebrate with the Syrian people the news of freeing our prisoners and releasing their chains," the rebels said. Leading rebel commander Abu Mohammed al-Golani said there was no room for turning back. "The future is ours," he said in a statement read on Syria's state TV after his forces took over Damascus.

The pace of events stunned Arab capitals and raised concerns about a new wave of instability in a region already in turmoil following the spread of conflict after the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, and the ensuing Gaza war.