The Syrian government has fallen after a lightning offensive by anti-regime forces across the country – ending President Bashar al Assad’s 24-year rule.

Mr Assad has left office and the country after giving orders for there to be a peaceful transfer of power, the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement on Sunday.

It did not say where he was, but said Russia had not been involved in the talks surrounding his departure.

Moscow was in touch with all Syrian opposition groups, it said, and urged all sides to refrain from violence.

Russia’s military bases in Syria had been put on a state of high alert, but that there was no serious threat to them at the current time, the ministry added.

Mr Assad’s whereabouts now – and those of his wife Asma and their two children – remain unknown.

Read more: Latest updates from Syria

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Bashar al Assad has fled the capital Damascus, say several sources. Pic: AP/Amr Nabil

Tehran – another of Mr Assad’s allies – said it would continue to closely monitor developments in Syria and the region.

The fate of the country lies in the hands of the Syrian people and should be pursued without foreign imposition or destructive intervention, Iran’s foreign ministry said.

The rebels, made up of various opposition groups, said they were working to transition power to a new governing body.

“The great Syrian revolution has moved from the stage of struggle to overthrow the Assad regime to the struggle to build a Syria together that befits the sacrifices of its people,” the coalition said in a statement, describing events as a new birth for “great Syria”.

A curfew was announced starting from 4pm (1pm UK time) until 5am.

Syrian opposition fighters celebrate the collapse of the government in the capital Damascus. Pic: AP
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Syrian opposition fighters celebrate the collapse of the government in Damascus. Pic: AP

Rebels burn down a military court in the capital: Pic: AP
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Rebels burn down a military court in the capital: Pic: AP

People holding a Syrian opposition flag celebrate in Damascus. Pic: Reuters
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People holding a Syrian opposition flag in Damascus. Pic: Reuters

Syria’s prime minister, who remains in the country, said he was ready to cooperate and offered a peaceful transition.

“I am here in my home,” Mohammad Ghazi al Jalali said. “I have not left it and do not intend to leave, except in a peaceful manner that ensures the continued functioning of public institutions and state facilities, promoting security and reassurance for our fellow citizens.”

Read more:
How the rebel assault unfolded
Assad fall ‘not surprising’

Key locations in Syria as well as the Iraqi town of Al Qaim, where troops are seeking refuge
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Key locations in Syria as well as the Iraqi town of Al Qaim, where troops are seeking refuge

Thousands celebrating in the streets

Thousands of Syrians, in cars and on foot, have congregated at a main square in Damascus chanting for freedom.

Saturday’s advances on the capital marked the first time the rebels reached the outskirts of the city since 2018, when government forces recaptured the area after a years-long siege.

In the key city of Homs – which rebel fighters seized after just a day of fighting – thousands more filled the streets after the army withdrew, dancing and chanting “Assad is gone, Homs is free”, and “Long live Syria and down with Bashar al Assad”.

The rebels have also claimed Deir el Zor in the east, and Suweida, Quneitra and Deraa in the south.

Mr Assad and his forces had faced a battle on three fronts – Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS) from the north, the Southern Front, and a Kurdish group in the east.

Abu Mohammed al Jolani led the stunning insurgency that toppled Mr Assad.

The HTS leader declared “the future is ours”, in a statement read out on Syrian state TV.

He said there was “no room for turning back” and his group was “determined” to continue on the path it started in 2011.

Rebel leader Abu Mohammed al Golani. Pic: Syrian Rebel Operations via Reuters
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Rebel leader Abu Mohammed al Jolani. Pic: Syrian Rebel Operations via Reuters

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Footage circulating on social media showed families ransacking the presidential palace.

Soldiers were reported to have deserted their posts and changed into civilian clothes as the rebels closed in.

Mohammed Amer al Oulabi, 44, who works in the electricity sector, was one of many celebrating on the streets.

“From Idlib to Damascus, it only took them (the opposition forces) a few days, thank God. May God bless them, the heroic lions who made us proud,” he said.

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Inside Assad’s private residence

The country’s international airport in Damascus has been abandoned and rebels said they had entered the notorious Saydnaya military prison north of the capital and freed inmates there.

Iran’s embassy was also stormed by Syrian rebels, Iran’s English-language Press TV reported.

In a sign of perhaps what was to come – protesters on Saturday brought down a statue of the president’s late father in a main square in a suburb a few miles from the centre of the capital.

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Damascus: Protesters topple statue

Mr Assad had relied on his main allies, Russia and Iran, to counter insurgencies during his decades in power.

But with Russia now busy with its full-scale invasion of Ukraine and Iran’s proxies Hezbollah and Hamas embroiled in a conflict with Israel, Syria’s army was left exposed.

The fall of Mr Assad’s regime marks a turning point for Syria after 13 years of civil conflict.

Towns and cities have been reduced to rubble, hundreds of thousands of people have died, and millions have been forced abroad as refugees.

It’s a new dawn – but there are dark clouds on the horizon

It’s over.

Fifty-four years of brutal Assad dynasty rule has come to an end. The streets of Damascus have erupted in celebration, President Assad has fled the country and the capital has fallen.

What comes next is of great concern. Syria is deeply divided, geographically and socially. This is a moment of huge peril.

Once the euphoria cools there will be deep hatred and anger towards former Assad loyalists after decades of murderous rule. Containing that will be difficult.

Who will govern Syria is unknown. Multiple rebel groups control different parts of the country and, we assume, they will all want their slice of power. That is a recipe for further civil war unless this can be managed in an orderly way.

Syria’s prime minister, Mohammed Ghazi al Jalali, has remained in Damascus and offered a peaceful transition. How he is treated will be a good indicator.

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the main group that started this rebellion with the capture of Aleppo, was once affiliated with Al Qaeda. It has renounced those links but remain a proscribed terror organisation by the US and others.

Russia and Iran, Assad’s two main state sponsors, abandoned him when his fate seemed inevitable. It’s unlikely they will abandon Syria quite so quickly though. Moscow has key military bases on the Mediterranean coast which opens up a part of the world to them – giving these up would be a huge strategic blow.

To Iran, Syria was a centrepiece in its axis of resistance, the funnel through which weapons were channelled to Hezbollah and vital territory in its arc of influence. But Assad and Hezbollah have now both collapsed, and Iran’s network of Shia influence is in tatters.

It’s a new dawn for Syria, but there are dark clouds on the horizon.

Trump: Syria is ‘not our friend’

US President Joe Biden and his team are monitoring the “extraordinary events” and are in touch with regional partners, the White House said this morning.

Daniel Shapiro, from the US Department of Defense, said they would continue to maintain their presence in eastern Syria “solely to ensure the enduring defeat” of the Islamic State.

President-elect Donald Trump said the US should not get involved in the conflict.

“Syria is a mess,” he posted on his social media site Truth Social, adding the country is “not our friend”.

In a fresh post this morning, he added: “Assad is gone. He has fled his country. His protector, Russia, Russia, Russia, led by [Russian President] Vladimir Putin, was not interested in protecting him any longer.

“Russia and Iran are in a weakened state right now, one because of Ukraine and a bad economy, the other because of Israel and its fighting success.”

President Bashar al Assad and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow in July 2024. Pic: AP
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Mr Assad and Mr Putin in Moscow in July 2024. Pic: AP

The UN’s special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, urged all Syrians to prioritise dialogue, unity, and respect for international humanitarian law and human rights as they seek to rebuild their society.

He also said he stands ready to support the Syrian people in their journey toward a stable and inclusive future.

British Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner told Sky’s Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips she “welcomed” news of Assad’s regime falling, adding: “He wasn’t exactly good to the Syrian people.”

Describing the situation in the war-torn Middle Eastern country as appearing to be “very serious”, Ms Rayner said: “We want to see a political resolution so that we can get that stability for Syrians and make sure that they have their infrastructure so that they have a political government there that is working in the interest of the Syrian people.”

Asked for her message to UK citizens in Syria, Ms Rayner said the foreign secretary was “very clear” that they should leave.

“We’ve had a plan to ensure that people were evacuated ahead of what’s happened over the weekend and we continue to support our UK nationals,” she added.