Syrian Opposition Declares Liberation of Damascus and Fall of Assad Regime, Russian Ships Evacuating with Remnants of Military Equipment

This morning, 8 December, Syrian rebels announced the liberation of Damascus. President Bashar Syrian rebels announced the end of the ‘dark era and the beginning of a new era for Syria’  

After losing control of Damascus against the backdrop of the ongoing offensive by opposition forces in the provinces of Latakia, Hama and Tartus, the Russian army, which had been actively supporting the Assad regime, withdrew its warships from the naval base in Tartus, which Assad had previously given to Russia as a payment for his ‘security’. So, on 8 December 2024, the frigate Admiral Grigorovich of the Russian Black Sea Fleet and the cargo ship Engineer Trubin of the Russian Northern Fleet left Tartus for the Mediterranean Sea, according to the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine. 

‘The rapid process of overthrowing Bashar al-Assad's regime in Syria was marked by the shameful flight of the Russian contingent from the territory of the Arab Republic. In the Syrian capital Damascus, the dictator's residence, government buildings and the central office of national television are under the control of forces opposed to Assad,’ the statement said.

The Russians are also transferring the remnants of their weapons and military equipment from Syria by military aircraft from the Khmemim airbase.

Iran, another of Assad's biggest foreign supporters after Russia, has also withdrawn its equipment from Syria and evacuated its embassy. 

While Iran and Russia have focused their military resources on their own conflicts, this distraction has given the rebels in Syria a window to move quickly through the country and reach the capital.

In their new statement, the Syrian rebels announced the end of the ‘dark era and the beginning of a new era for Syria’ and the date of this beginning - 12 December 2024. They also announced that they had gained full control of the key city of Homs early on Sunday, after which they moved towards the capital Damascus and established control there. 

Earlier, Prime Minister Muhammad Ghazi al-Jalali said he was ready to cooperate with any leadership elected by the Syrian people and peacefully transfer power.

In 2011, the Syrian Civil War broke out when Bashar al-Assad began violently suppressing Syrian protests. 

Since 2020, when Turkey and Russia agreed to a ceasefire, the conflict has been largely static.

New clashes between the forces of the regime of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad and opposition armed groups began on 27 November in rural Aleppo province in northern Syria.