On Saturday night, Sunni Islamist forces captured the city of Homs, Syria’s third largest. On Sunday, they seized the capital, Damascus. Overthrown leader Bashar al-Assad fled. His family had ruled Syria with an iron fist for 50 years.
In Syria, the Sunni rebel advances since November 27 were the largest in recent years. The cities of Aleppo, Hama, and Homs fell within days as the Syrian army melted away. The road to Damascus from the Lebanese border lay littered with military uniforms and charred armored vehicles.
Russia, Iran, and Hezbollah had provided crucial support to Assad 10 years ago. But they all abandoned him. They are caught up in other conflicts with Ukraine and Israel.
The rebels mainly come from the Sunni Muslim majority in Syria.
On Sunday, Syrian state television broadcast a rebel statement saying Assad had been overthrown and all prisoners released. Soldiers and police fled their posts and looters broke into the Defense Ministry. Families wandered the presidential palace, walking by damaged portraits of Assad. Other parts of the capital were empty and shops were closed.
Thousands of Syrians poured into streets. Many celebrated the supposed end of what has been a nearly 14-year civil war.
Sunni rebel commander Anas Salkhadi appeared on state TV. He sought to reassure religious and ethnic minorities. He says, “Syria is for everyone, no exceptions. Syria is for Druze, Sunnis, Alawites, and all sects.” He claims, “We will not deal with people the way the Assad family did.”
The rebels urged people to preserve “the free Syrian state” and announced a curfew in Damascus from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m.
Later on Sunday, Russia announced that Assad had received asylum in Moscow.
Syrian rebel leader Abu Mohammed al-Jolani will likely take control of Syria. He describes Assad’s fall as “a victory to the Islamic nation.” Not all Syrians feel confident about his leadership, however.
A former al-Qaida commander, al-Golani cut ties with that group years ago. But the United States and the United Nations consider his current group, known as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, a terrorist organization.
The UN’s special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, is calling for urgent talks in Geneva to ensure an “orderly political transition.”
The rebels must now try to heal bitter divisions in a country ravaged by war and split among armed factions. Turkey-backed opposition fighters are battling U.S.-allied Kurdish forces in the north. The Islamic State group is still active in remote areas.
Pray for the people of Syria, many of whom have never known life without oppression, war, and turmoil.
The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. — Psalm 9:9
