Jubilation and gunfire as Syrians celebrate end of Assad's rule
- 08 Dec 2024
Syrians poured into streets echoing with celebratory gunfire on Sunday after a stunning rebel advance reached the capital, ending the Assad family's 50 years of iron rule but raising questions about the future of the country.
Joyful crowds gathered in central squares in Damascus, waving the Syrian 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.
"I can't believe I'm living this moment," tearful Damascus resident Amer Batha told AFP by phone. "We've been waiting a long time for this day," he said, adding: "We are starting a new history for Syria."
Others gleefully ransacked the presidential palace and residence after President Bashar Assad and other top officials vanished, their whereabouts unknown. Abu Mohammed Al Golani, a former Al Qaeda commander who cut ties with the group years ago and says he embraces pluralism and religious tolerance, leads the biggest rebel faction and is poised to chart the country's future.
In his first public appearance since fighters entered the Damascus suburbs on Saturday, Al Golani visited the capital’s sprawling Umayyad Mosque and said Assad's fall was "a victory to the Islamic nation.”
Syrian state television broadcast a video statement early on Sunday by a group of rebels saying that Assad had been overthrown and all prisoners had been released. They called on people to preserve the institutions of "the free Syrian state.” The rebels later announced a curfew in Damascus from 4pm to 5am.
The rebels said they freed people held at the notorious Saydnaya prison, where rights groups say thousands were tortured and killed. A video circulating online purported to show rebels breaking open cell doors and freeing dozens of female prisoners, many of whom appeared shocked and confused. At least one small child could be seen among them.
Rebel commander Anas Salkhadi, who appeared on state TV later in the day, sought to reassure Syria's 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.
Residents of Damascus gathered to pray at mosques and to celebrate in squares, chanting, "God is great.” People also chanted anti-Assad slogans and honked car horns. Teenage boys picked up weapons apparently discarded by security forces and fired into the air.
Revellers filled central Umayyad Square, where the Defence Ministry is located. Men fired celebratory gunshots and some waved the three-starred Syrian flag that predates the Assad government and was adopted by the revolutionaries. "I cannot express my happiness," said Bassam Masr. "But this happiness will not be completed until I can see my son out of prison and know where is he. I have been searching for him for two hours. He has been detained for 13 years.”
Soldiers and police left their posts and fled, and looters broke into the Defence Ministry. Videos showed families wandering into the presidential palace, with some emerging carrying stacks of plates and other household items. "Victory to Syria. Syria remains and Assad to hell, to the dustbin of history,” said a man exploring the palace.
Syria’s Al Watan newspaper, which was historically pro-government, wrote: "We are facing a new page for Syria. We thank God for not shedding more blood. We believe and trust that Syria will be for all Syrians.”
The newspaper added that media workers should not be blamed for publishing past government statements, saying: "We only carried out the instructions and published the news they sent us.”
Syrian Prime Minister Mohammed Ghazi Jalali said in a video statement that the government was ready to "extend its hand” to the opposition and turn its functions over to a transitional government. A video shared on Syrian opposition media showed a group of armed men escorting him out of his office and to the Four Seasons hotel on Sunday.
Rami Abdurrahman of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told The Associated Press that Assad took a flight on Sunday from Damascus.
Associated Press
