Russia has granted the al-Assad household asylum on ‘humanitarian grounds’, Russian information businesses report.
Syria’s ousted President Bashar al-Assad and his household have arrived in Russia after being granted asylum by Russian authorities, Russian information businesses reported, citing a Kremlin supply.
Russia has granted the household asylum on “humanitarian grounds”, the Interfax, TASS and Ria Novosti information businesses reported on Sunday, quoting the unnamed supply.
Al-Assad’s whereabouts had been unknown after armed opposition fighters captured Damascus within the early hours of Sunday morning, declaring that his authorities had been toppled. The advance got here lower than two weeks into the opposition’s lightning offensive.
“Proper now we see that a variety of sources, together with the BBC’s Russian service, as an example, have reported that al-Assad may presumably have been evacuated by a Russian aircraft from a Russian air base in Latakia, Syria that took off a number of hours in the past with its transponders turned off,” Al Jazeera’s Yulia Shapovalova mentioned from Russia’s capital Moscow.
Talking on the White Home, US President Joe Biden acknowledged that he was undecided the place al-Assad was, however that “there’s phrase he’s in Moscow”.
“The autumn of the regime is a elementary act of justice. It’s a second of historic alternative for the long-suffering folks of Syria to construct a greater future for his or her proud nation,” Biden additionally mentioned.
The Russian International Ministry had mentioned earlier on Sunday that al-Assad had resigned and left Syria.
Crowds ransacked the deposed chief’s opulent house after the opposition forces declared he had fled.
Residents within the capital had been seen cheering within the streets shortly after insurgent factions declared “town of Damascus free”.
In the meantime, Russian information businesses additionally reported that Syrian opposition leaders have assured the protection of Russian army bases and diplomatic missions inside Syria.
“Russian officers are involved with representatives of the armed Syrian opposition, whose leaders have assured the protection of Russian army bases and diplomatic establishments on the territory of Syria,” TASS reported, citing a Kremlin supply.
That’s regardless of Russia having been an energetic participant in Syria’s struggle, supporting al-Assad and finishing up repeated bombing raids on opposition areas, ensuing within the deaths of civilians. Russian help reversed the tide of the struggle in 2015, when opposition fighters had been threatening Damascus. As an alternative, al-Assad was capable of push the opposition to enclaves within the north of the nation, till the fast insurgent advance that started in late November.
The occasions of Sunday got here after 13 years of struggle, which additionally put an finish to greater than half a century of the al-Assad household’s rule.
The Syrian struggle began as a largely unarmed rebellion towards al-Assad in March 2011, which finally turned an all-out struggle that dragged in overseas powers, killed a whole lot of 1000’s of individuals and turned hundreds of thousands into refugees the world over.