LAST UPDATE | 8 Dec 2024

ISLAMIST-LED REBELS toppled Syria’s longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in a lightning offensive that a UN envoy called “a watershed moment” for the nation marred by civil war.

The UN envoy for Syria said the country was at “a watershed moment” today, after rebels declared they had taken the capital, Damascus.

Describing Syria’s drawn-out civil war as a “dark chapter (that) has left deep scars”, special envoy Geir Pedersen said: “Today we look forward with cautious hope to the opening of a new one — one of peace, reconciliation, dignity and inclusion for all Syrians”.

“Today marks a watershed moment in Syria’s history — a nation that has endured nearly 14 years of relentless suffering and unspeakable loss,” he said, extending his “deepest solidarity to all who have borne the weight of death, destruction, detention and untold human rights violations”.

President Bashar al-Assad’s reported flight from Damascus comes less than two weeks after the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) launched a lightning offensive challenging more than five decades of domination by the Assad family.

Assad had ruled Syria since 2000, when he inherited power from his father.

Since 2011, he had overseen a crackdown on the democracy movement, which began with peaceful protests.

The Assad government’s repression of the protests morphed into one of the bloodiest wars of the century, killing hundreds of thousands of people and displacing millions.

Pedersen acknowledged in a statement that “the challenges ahead remain immense”, stressing however: “This is a moment to embrace the possibility of renewal… [and] a path toward a united and peaceful Syria.”

The UN special envoy emphasised “the clear desire expressed by millions of Syrians that stable and inclusive transitional arrangements are put in place, that Syrian institutions continue to function”.

He said the Syrian people should be helped to realise their “legitimate aspirations… [to] restore a unified Syria”.

International reactions

Ireland

In a statement, Taoiseach Simon Harris said that the fall of the Assad dictatorship is to be welcomed – “but the world must now act to prevent chaos and tyranny from filling the vacuum.”

Harris said that the scenes visible in Syria are “truly historic”, adding that the people of Syria have “long wanted a future free of isolation and full of normalised relations with their neighbours and world powers”.

Harris said that Irish troops concluded a decade of peacekeeping through UNDOF in Syria earlier this year, and “the suffering and hardship endured by the Syrian people was plain to see during our time in the country. 

“A once in a generation opportunity for regime change is now upon us. The future of Syria must be determined by Syrians through a peaceful transition as well as free and fair elections.”

In a separate statement released this evening, Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin said that al-Assad’s regime was one of “a brutal tyranny that maintained its grip on power through fear and repression.

“The end of the regime is an opportunity for the Syrian people to determine their future.”

He added that it was his hope that calm is restored and there is a peaceful transition of power. The Irish government will continue to follow the evolving situation in Syria closely, he said.

China

China’s foreign ministry said it hopes Syria “returns to stability as soon as possible” in the wake of the overthrow.

Beijing “is closely following the development of the situation in Syria and hopes that Syria returns to stability as soon as possible”, the foreign ministry said.

Iran

Diplomats from Assad ally Iran were reported to have left the embassy in Damascus before it was attacked by “unknown individuals” on Sunday, Iranian state TV said.

Their departure followed calls by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Saturday for “political dialogue” between the Syrian government and opposition groups.

Turkey

In Turkey, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said the overthrow of the Assad regime was not sudden but rather the result of the grinding civil war.

“Of course, this didn’t happen overnight. For the last 13 years, the country has been in turmoil,” Fidan said at conference in Doha.

Fidan added that international and regional actors should ensure a smooth transition from the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad after Islamist-led rebels took Damascus.

“We have to work very hard… with Syrian people, not just Turkey, but also regional actors, the international actors, to make sure that there is a good and smooth transition period, no more harm to the civilian people,” Fidan said at the Doha Forum in Qatar.

UAE

A senior United Arab Emirates official also urged Syrians on Sunday to collaborate in order to avert a spiral into chaos.

“We hope that the Syrians will work together, that we don’t just see another episode of impending chaos,” presidential adviser Anwar Gargash said at the Manama Dialogue in Bahrain.

USA

US President-elect Donald Trump attributed the fall of Assad to losing the backing of Russia.

“Assad is gone,” he said on his Truth Social platform. “His protector, Russia, Russia, Russia, led by Vladimir Putin, was not interested in protecting him any longer.”

His comments followed an earlier statement from National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett that President Joe Biden was keeping a close eye on “extraordinary events” transpiring and remained in constant contact with regional partners.