by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – Syria’s 50-year Assad dynasty abruptly ended this weekend when a lightning 10-day rebel offensive overran government-held territory and seized Damascus with little resistance. Bashar al-Assad, who ruled for nearly 25 years, fled by plane to an unknown destination as rebels took the capital.
Witnesses reported that thousands poured into the city’s main square, waving flags and chanting “freedom” as rebels broke through the city gates on Sunday and Assad’s forces fled the streets.
Rebel seized control of state media offices in Damascus “to broadcast the victory announcement over Assad,” featuring men declaring that President Bashar al-Assad had been overthrown and all detainees set free.
The man delivering the statement said the Operations Room to Conquer Damascus, an opposition group, urged all opposition fighters and citizens to safeguard the institutions of “the free Syrian state.”
“We celebrate with the Syrian people the news of freeing our prisoners and releasing their chains and announcing the end of the era of injustice in Sednaya prison,” the rebels said.
Damascus’s fall followed the swift capture of Homs, a strategic crossroads linking the capital to coastal government strongholds, which rebels seized late Saturday in under 24 hours of combat.
After government troops fled the city, thousands of residents filled the streets, dancing and chanting, “Assad is gone, Homs is free” and “Long live Syria and down with Bashar al-Assad.”
Once Homs fell under rebel control, Abu Mohammed al-Golani, leader of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), declared that the rebels were ready to seize the entire country, promising “the end of the criminal regime is near.”
The regime’s sudden collapse reshaped the Middle East, ending the Assad family’s decades-long rule and delivering a sharp blow to Russia and Iran, who have now lost a key regional ally.
In one suburb, a statue of Hafez al-Assad was brought down and destroyed, while rebels secured control over the entire southwest within 24 hours.
The rebel factions posted on Telegram, “After 50 years of oppression under Baath rule, and 13 years of crimes and tyranny and (forced) displacement… we announce today the end of this dark period and the start of a new era for Syria.”
Copyright 1999-2025 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
Latest News from Worthy News
Russia escalated its war rhetoric Friday, stating that any ceasefire with Ukraine is conditional on Kyiv’s complete withdrawal from the Donbas region, as Ukrainian forces claimed new gains near the strategic northeastern hub of Kupiansk.
Bulgaria plunged into renewed political turmoil Friday after Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov resigned following mass protests accusing his minority government of corruption, just weeks before the Balkan nation is due to adopt the euro.
Hungary’s embattled Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, widely viewed as Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest ally within the European Union, has accused the EU’s executive arm of “systematically raping European law” over plans to lock up Russia’s frozen assets until Moscow ends its war in Ukraine and compensates for the devastation it has inflicted.
Germany on Friday summoned the Russian ambassador amid allegations that Moscow is conducting a coordinated campaign to destabilize the country, the European Union’s largest economy, according to government officials.
A leading human rights group has condemned Hungary’s decision to place state-run youth detention centers under police oversight after abuse scandals triggered calls for Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s resignation.
The Trump administration has prevented more than $1 billion in attempted federal student-loan fraud this year after reinstating strict identity-verification requirements that officials say were weakened under the Biden administration.
The Trump administration is preparing to appoint an American two-star general to command the newly formed International Stabilization Force (ISF) in Gaza, according to a report published Thursday by Axios citing U.S. and Israeli officials.