Jubilant Syrians take to streets to celebrate Assad overthrow

Thousands of jubilant Syrians gathered outside a landmark mosque in the capital Damascus to celebrate during the first Friday prayers since the ouster of president Bashar Al Assad.

More than half a century of rule by the Assad clan came to a sudden end on Sunday, after a lightning rebel offensive swept across the country and took the capital.

Ousted president Assad fled Syria, closing an era in which suspected dissidents were jailed or killed, and capping nearly 14 years of war that killed more than 500,000 people and displaced millions.

Abu Mohammed Al Jolani, head of the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS), called on Syrians "to go to the streets to express their joy" on Friday to mark "the victory of the blessed revolution."

Interim prime minister Mohammed Al Bashir addressed a large congregation at Damascus's landmark Umayyad Mosque on the Muslim day of prayer and rest.

Interim PM Mohammad Al Bashir addresses a crowd at the Umayyad Mosque. AFP

Thousands flocked to the mosque — a sight unimaginable just days ago — some raising the three-star Syrian independence flag which none dared raise during Assad's rule.

Exhilarated crowds chanted "one, one, one, the Syrian people is one!" "We are gathering because we're happy Syria has been freed, we're happy to have been liberated from the prison in which we lived," said Nour Thi Al Ghina, 38, from Damascus.

An areal photo shows thousands of jubilant Syrians celebrating this week's fall of Bashar Al Assad's rule at the central Umayyad Square in Damascus. AFP

"This is the first time we have converged in such big numbers and the first time we witness such an event," she said, beaming with joy.

Omar Al Khaled, 23, echoed her comments. "Our morale is very high and we hope that Syria will head towards a better future," he said.

A fighter of the ruling Syrian body gestures on the day of the first Friday prayers at the Umayyad Mosque. Reuters

Several hundred people gathered in a festive and relaxed atmosphere in the main square of Syria's second city Aleppo, a scene of fierce fighting during the country's long civil war, AFP correspondents reported.

A huge billboard depicting Assad and his father Hafez was set on fire. "The Assad father and son oppressed us, but we have liberated our country from injustice," a white-bearded policeman at the scene said.

Another policeman, Alaa al Imafi, 32, held up a red rose that a little girl gave him. "I cannot tell you how happy I am," he said.

This aerial view shows worshippers attending the first weekly Friday prayers since the ouster of Assad at the Umayyad mosque. AFP

In the southern city of Sweida, the heartland of Syria's Druze minority where anti-government demonstrations have been held for more than a year, hundreds took to the streets, singing and clapping in jubilation.

Agence France-Presse