The Syrian ruler Bashar Assad has stepped down and fled to Russia as rebels raise their flag above embassies. The rebel forces stormed the Syrian capital on Sunday, taking over the country.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, writing on X, said Assad’s fall is a reminder that Russia and its allies can be defeated. Numerous other European and world leaders celebrated Assad’s fall. “The events in Syria have made the world realize once again, or at least they should, that even the most cruel regime may fall and that Russia and its allies can be defeated,” Tusk wrote.

The events in Syria have made the world realise once again, or at least they should, that even the most cruel regime may fall and that Russia and its allies can be defeated.

— Donald Tusk (@donaldtusk) December 8, 2024

Hours later, Russia’s TASS state news service said Assad and members of his family were in Moscow and had been granted asylum on “humanitarian grounds.” After talks with rebels who took over Damascus on Sunday, facing scant resistance from government forces, Assad “decided to resign from the presidency and left the country, instructing a peaceful transfer of power,” the ministry said in a post on Telegram.

The fact that “power” over humans was transferred is never a good thing. Someone is now going to rule over the people of Syria in Assad’s place and this is not going to bring the “freedom” to the slave class that so many need to live their lives and thrive without intervention.

Russia has since requested a meeting of the United Nations Security Council to discuss the events in Syria, TASS reported according to Politico. Moscow is asking “all parties involved to renounce the use of violence and to resolve all issues of governance by political means,” the Foreign Ministry said.

Syria Has Fallen! Who Are The Winners, Who Are The Losers, And What Is Next For The Middle East?

Syrian Prime Minister Mohammed Ghazi Jalali said the government was ready to “extend its hand” to the opposition and to turn its functions over to a transitional government, Associate Press reported. Reuters quoted rebel leader Abu Mohammed al-Golani as saying on Sunday that Syrian state institutions will be supervised by Jalali until they are handed over.  –Politico