With Assad gone, a new era begins in Syria

Rebel Leader Golani Meets Officials To Discuss New Govt

Damascus stirred back to life on Monday at the start of a hopeful but uncertain era after rebels seized the capital and President Bashar al-Assad fled to Russia, following 13 years of civil war and more than 50 years of his family's brutal rule.

Busy traffic returned to the streets and people ventured out after a nighttime curfew, but most shops remained shut. Rebels milled about in the centre.

The main rebel commander Ahmed al-Sharaa, better known as Abu Mohammed al-Golani, met overnight with Assad's Prime Minister Mohammed Jalali and Vice President Faisal Mekdad to discuss arrangements for a transitional government, a source familiar with the discussions told Reuters.

Al Jazeera television reported that the transitional authority would be headed by Mohamed Al-Bashir, who ran the administration in a small pocket of rebel-held territory before the 12-day lightning offensive that swept into Damascus.

Syria's banks would reopen on Tuesday and staff had been asked to return to offices, according to a Syrian central bank source and two commercial bankers. Syria's currency would continue to be used, they said.

At the Interior Ministry that ran Assad's police force, furniture had been looted and staff stayed away. Armed rebels were there to maintain order.

The oil ministry called on all employees in the sector to head to their workplaces starting on Tuesday, adding that protection would be provided to ensure their safety.

Fighters from the remote countryside milled about in the capital, clustering in the central Umayyad Square before Damascus's great 1,300-year-old mosque.