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'Syria is ours, not the Assad family’s': Celebrations mark end of regime rule
Syrians took to the streets of Damascus after opposition rebels successfully overthrew the regime of Bashar al-Assad early on Sunday, following the fall of the Syrian capital.
Damascenes rushed to the city’s Umayyad Square to celebrate the end of the Assad family’s decades-long rule, chanting for freedom and waving opposition flags.
At the dawn call to prayer, some mosques were broadcasting religious chants usually reserved for festive occasions, though some had called for residents to stay home amid the rebels' takeover.
Celebratory gunfire was heard in the streets, while ululations and chants of 'God is great' were sounded across the capital to mark the occasion.
The rebels officially declared early on Sunday that "the tyrant Bashar al-Assad has fled" and declared "the city of Damascus free".
Some Syrians in Damascus said they were moved to tears following the historic event. One man, Amer Batha, told AFP:
"We have waited a long time for this day. We are starting a new history for Syria."
In Damascus’ commercial centre, Syrians toppled the statue of the country's previous president, the Ba’athist Hafez al-Assad, who ruled for almost 30 years in Syria until his death in 2000.
Eyewitnesses said residents were smashing the statue with sticks, standing on it and making victory signs. In some streets, armed fighters were seen firing into the air and chanting "Syria is ours, not the Assad family’s".
In the old quarters of the capital, opposition-aligned young men were seen chanting "The Syrian people are one," while some women threw celebratory rice at passing fighters.
"I can’t believe I won’t be afraid anymore," Ilham al-Basatneh, 50, said from her balcony. "Today’s joy is great and will not be complete until the criminal is held accountable."
On social media, Syrian media professionals, government employees, and even members of parliament replaced their profile pictures with the image of the flag used by the opposition. Waddah Abd Rabbo, editor-in-chief of the pro-government Al-Watan newspaper, wrote, "The Syrian media and media professionals are not to blame. They were and we were with them [the opposition]. We only carried out the instructions and published the news they sent us."
Celebrations outside of Syria
Celebrations took place elsewhere too. Syrian refugees in the Turkish city of Istanbul also took to the streets to mark the end of the regime’s rule.
Hundreds gathered in the city’s central district of Fatih, setting off fireworks and chanting 'Allahu Akbar', while many entered to the Syrian embassy in the Sisli district to remove the regime’s flag, replacing it with the opposition one.
Celebrations in other cities in Turkey also took place, including Gaziantep.
Turkey is home to over three million Syrian refugees, who mostly sought refuge following the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War.
Elsewhere, the Syrian opposition flag was unfurled at the country's embassy in the Greek capital Athens, hours after opposition rebels declared they had seized Damascus.
Greek state news agency ANA said at least three men had entered the embassy and unfurled the flag, which was seen hanging from the roof of the building.
One man was seen on an embassy balcony clutching a portrait of al-Assad and shouting "dictator".
Syrian rebels, led by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS,) began a sweeping offensive in the country’s northwest on November 27, with the intention of ousting the Assad regime. Rebels advanced rapidly throughout the country, and went on to capture a number of key cities including Aleppo, Hama and Homs, before entering Damascus on Saturday.
Assad is said to have fled the country, though his whereabouts remain officially unknown.
The Syrian Prime Minister, Mohammed al-Jalali said he was "ready to cooperate" with any leadership "chosen by the people", following the toppling of Assad.
Provinces in the country's south and east also fell also from the hands of the regime after local fighters seized control and Assad's forces withdrew.