Syrian rebels overthrew the rule of Bashar al-Assad, the fallen dictator fled the country. Russian agencies – citing Kremlin sources – reported in the afternoon that Assad and his family are in Russia and have been granted asylum there. For now, however, there is no official and confirmed information about the whereabouts of the former leader of Syria.
Syrian rebels announced on Sunday the liberation of Damascus and the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad after 24 years of his rule. The dictator suppressed all forms of dissent and locked thousands of people in prison. The rebels announced that they had released “all prisoners” in the capital.
Since then, speculation has abounded about Assad's whereabouts. Two Reuters sources indicated that perhaps he died in a plane crash. One of the machines disappeared from radar on the night from Saturday to Sunday after it took off from the airport in Damascus.
Russian agency sources report Assad's arrival in Russia
Although there is no official information about Assad yet, late on Sunday afternoon, Russian news agencies reported – citing a source in the Kremlin – that the Syrian leader and his family had arrived in Moscow and received asylum.
The Interfax agency quoted an anonymous source who said: “Syrian President Assad has arrived in Moscow. Russia has granted them (him and his family – editor's note) asylum for humanitarian reasons.”
Moscow: Assad left the presidency and Syria
Earlier on Sunday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia – an ally of Bashar al-Assad's regime – announced that the dictator “after talks with a number of participants in the Syrian conflict, left the position of president and Syria and ordered a peaceful transfer of power.”
As it was added, Russia did not participate in talks on the transfer of power. The ministry noted that the Russian authorities are in contact with the Syrian opposition.
Main photo source: PAP/EPA/TOLGA BOZOGLU