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Syrian government of Bashar al-Assad fell, bringing a stunning end to his family’s 50-year rule after a lightning offensive by Islamist rebels.
The plane carrying Assad left Damascus on Sunday morning as rebel fighters entered the capital, and two officials told Reuters he had fled the country.
Prime Minister Mohammed Ghazi Jalali said he would meet with the rebels, adding that the government was ready to “lend a hand” to the opposition and hand over its functions to a transitional government.
The Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the largest and best organized rebel group, said on Telegram that Syria was “free” from the “tyrant” Assad. It will be a “new Syria” where “everyone lives in peace and justice prevails,” HTS said.
Celebrations are taking place in central Damascus with thousands of people gathering on foot in the capital’s main square and chanting “freedom”.
UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen called for urgent talks in Geneva on Saturday to ensure an “orderly political transition”. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, whose country is Assad’s main international sponsor, said he was “sorry for the Syrian people”.