Syria's Bashar Assad has fled to Moscow after his ouster and received asylum from ally Russia after a swift anti-regime offensive captured Damascus, ending five decades of his family's rule, Russian media said Sunday.
Thousands of Syrians poured into streets echoing with celebratory gunfire and waved the revolutionary flag in scenes that recalled the early days of the Arab Spring uprising, before a brutal crackdown and the rise of an insurgency plunged the country into a nearly 14-year civil war.
The swiftly moving events raised questions about the future of the country and the wider region.
The arrival of Assad and his family in Moscow was reported by Russian agencies Tass and RIA, citing an unidentified source at the Kremlin.
A spokesman there didn't immediately respond to questions. RIA also said Syrian insurgents had guaranteed the security of Russian military bases and diplomatic posts in Syria.
Earlier, Russia claimed Assad left Syria after negotiations with opposition groups and that he had given instructions to transfer power peacefully.
The leader of Syria's biggest anti-regime faction, Abu Mohammed al-Golani of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), looks poised to chart the country’s future.
In his first public appearance since fighters entered the Damascus suburbs Saturday, al-Golani visited the Umayyad Mosque and described Assad's fall as "a victory to the Islamic nation."
The anti-regime forces face the daunting task of healing bitter divisions in a country ravaged by war and split among armed factions. Türkiye-backed opposition fighters are battling U.S.-allied PKK/YPG terrorists in the north, and Daesh is still active in some remote areas.
Anti-regime commander Anas Salkhadi appeared on state TV and sought to reassure religious and ethnic minorities, saying: "Syria is for everyone, no exceptions. Syria is for Druze, Sunnis, Alawites, and all sects.”
"We will not deal with people the way the Assad family did," he added.
