As international powers assessed the sudden shift, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk remarked that the events in Syria demonstrate how even the cruelest regime can be brought down, and that Russia and its allies can be defeated.
In a statement posted to his official Facebook page on Sunday, Tusk said: “The events in Syria have once again shown the world—or at least they should—that even the most ruthless dictatorship can collapse, and that Russia and its partners can be overcome.”
The rebel offensive, spearheaded by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and its allies, began on November 27. Within days, the insurgents advanced swiftly into Damascus with minimal resistance. By the early hours of Sunday, the Syrian army command conceded that Assad’s iron-fisted reign—marked by decades of human rights abuses—had effectively ended.
Questions over Assad’s whereabouts
Syria’s Prime Minister Muhammad Gazi al-Jalali announced that since Saturday evening, there has been no information on the whereabouts of Assad or Defense Minister Ali Mahmud Abbas. Government sources said Assad and members of his entourage departed Damascus on Sunday for an unknown destination.
According to reports originally highlighted by Reuters, the fall of Assad’s regime and his subsequent flight—reportedly to Russia, as indicated by Russian media and officials—marks a turning point in a region long dominated by his family’s rule. The collapse removes a critical pillar of Iranian and Russian influence in the Arab world and reshapes strategic calculations across the Middle East.
A diplomat familiar with the situation, paraphrasing comments from Russian envoy Mikhail Ulyanov, said on Sunday that Moscow confirmed it had granted asylum to Assad and his family. With Assad’s departure, global powers are now evaluating a “new-look Middle East.” U.S. President Joe Biden, referencing assessments similar to those covered by Reuters, expressed that Syria now enters a phase of instability and uncertainty. For the first time in years, the landscape is changing: neither Russia, Iran, nor the Hezbollah militia holds an influential role in Damascus.
Despite its key role in ousting Assad, HTS remains designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, Turkey, and the United Nations. Analysts suggest that while the group has tried to soften its image, substantial concerns persist about how it will govern a post-Assad Syria, particularly given the country’s diverse ethnic and religious communities.
The removal of Assad’s regime could disrupt Iran’s capacity to transfer weapons to its allies and threaten Russia’s strategic naval foothold in the Mediterranean. Meanwhile, the end of more than a decade of conflict opens the possibility that millions of Syrian refugees, long scattered across Turkey, Lebanon, and Jordan, may finally consider returning home.
(jh)
Source: PAP, Reuters