The Syrian rebels announced today that they had ended 24 years of authoritarian rule by Bashar al-Assad, in the first announcement broadcast on state television since their lightning attack that took the world by surprise.
The Syrian army command informed officers today that the Assad regime has ended, a Syrian officer told Reuters.
However, the Syrian army later announced that it was continuing operations against «terrorist groups» in the cities of Hama and Homs, as well as in the outskirts of Deraa.
Assad was flown out of Damascus to an unknown destination earlier today, two senior army officials told Reuters, while the rebels said they entered the capital with no signs of army deployment.
«We celebrate with the Syrian people the news of the release of our prisoners and their liberation from their chains and the announcement of the end of the era of injustice in Sednaya prison,» the rebels said, referring to a large military prison on the outskirts of Damascus where the Syrian government had imprisoned thousands of people.
Thousands of people gathered in cars and on foot in a central Damascus square chanting «Freedom», eyewitnesses said.
A Syrian Air plane took off from Damascus airport around the time the capital was occupied by rebels, according to data from the Flightradar website.
The plane initially flew towards the Syrian coast, a stronghold of Assad's Alawites, but then made a sharp 180-degree turn and flew for a few minutes in the opposite direction before disappearing from the map.
Reuters cannot confirm so far who was on the plane.
Two Syrian sources said there is a strong possibility that Assad was killed in a plane crash, as it is a mystery why the plane made a sharp 180-degree turn and disappeared from the map.
«It disappeared from radar, they probably turned off the transponder, but I think it is more likely that the plane was shot down,» a Syrian source said without elaborating.
The head of the main Syrian opposition organisation abroad, Hadi al-Bahra, said Damascus is now «without Bashar al-Assad».
