Syrian rebels appear to have entered Damascus as Assad regime’s defenses collapse

Syrian The rebels appear to have entered the capital Damascus after encountering little resistance from regime forces, as President Bashar al-Assad’s decades-long grip on power appears to be weakening by the minute. in minutes.

“The rebels are in Barzeh,” a neighborhood in Damascus city, a resident told CNN, adding that clashes were currently taking place.

Early Sunday morning, a source close to the rebel advance told CNN: “Militarily, Damascus has fallen. »

A few hours earlier, the main Syrian armed opposition group had declared that they had “completely liberated” the large city of Homs, north of the capital. Syrians were seen demolish and burned posters of Assad after rebels entered the city, in scenes reminiscent of pro-democracy protests in the city during the Arab Spring more than a decade ago.

Just a day ago, observers were saying that Homs was of considerable strategic importance to the rebels, to the extent that its capture effectively split the Assad regime in two, effectively cutting off the Damascus government from the coast. But on Sunday morning, it wasn’t even clear that there was still a working diet.

The rebels’ progress was incredibly rapid. After leaving their territory in the northwestern province of Idlib, the main rebel group captured Aleppo And Hama in just over a week of fighting. After being joined on Friday by a new uprising In the southern province of Daraa, both groups have set their sights on Damascus.

“We were able to liberate four Syrian towns in 24 hours: Daraa, Quneitra, Suwayda and Homs,” said Lt. Col. Hassan Abdul Ghani, spokesman for the main rebel group. “Our operations continue to liberate the entire Damascus countryside and our eyes are on the capital, Damascus. »

Earlier on Saturday, southern rebels said they had reached “the gates of Damascus”. Geotagged videos by CNN showed residents to spill a huge statue of Assad’s father, former president Hafez al-Assad, in the suburb of Jaramana. During the evening, rebels were active in several suburban pockets, a few kilometers from the presidential palace.

The regime was expected to mount a firmer defense of Damascus, but rebels said senior Assad regime officials were preparing to defect to join them in the capital.

Although the official line from the Syrian president’s office is that Assad has not fled, a source with knowledge of the situation told CNN that Assad not found in Damascus.

Echoes of previous demonstrations

After regime forces left Homs, residents began flooding the streets in celebration. Geotagged videos by CNN showed residents tearing down posters of Assad and his father above the doors of the Officers’ Club in the city center.

These scenes recall one of the most symbolic images of the Arab Spring in Syria, when pro-democracy protesters tore down posters of Assad from above the same gates in 2011.

Nearby, residents were also seen celebrating in Clock Tower Square, one of the focal points of early anti-government protests.

To quell these protests, the regime’s army launched a brutal attack on the Khalidiya neighborhood, using tanks and mortars to attack civilian houses, causing some of them to collapse. Regime troops stormed the area, massacring families in their homes. It is estimated that around 200 people died in this massacre.

In a video broadcast live from Clock Tower Square by a resident on Saturday evening, a resident threw a framed portrait of Assad to the ground, shattering its glass. For 10 minutes, Syrians filled the square, singing to celebrate the apparent collapse of the Assad regime.

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