Damascus [Syria], December 9: Syrians poured out into the streets across Syria and around the world, jubilant at the end of Bashar al-Assad's rule.
Residents in the capital were seen cheering in the streets as the opposition fighters heralded the departure of "tyrant" Assad, saying: "We declare the city of Damascus free."
"I can't believe I'm living this moment," tearful Damascus resident Amer Batha said.
"We've been waiting a long time for this day," he said, adding: "We are starting a new history for Syria."
Assad's reported departure comes less than two weeks after the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group challenged more than five decades of Assad family rule with a lightning offensive.
Prime Minister Mohammed al-Jalali said he was ready to cooperate with "any leadership chosen by the Syrian people".
Around the country, people toppled statues of Hafez al-Assad, Bashar al-Assad's father and the founder of the system of government that he inherited.
For the past 50 years in Syria, even the slightest suspicion of dissent could land one in prison or get one killed.
The rapid developments came just hours after HTS said it had captured the strategic city of Homs, where prisoners were also released.
Homs was the third major city seized by the opposition fighters, who began their advance on November 27, reigniting a years-long war that had become largely dormant.
Before Damascus, a string of towns and cities, including the northern city of Aleppo, had fallen from Assad's hands.
The commander of Syria's US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which controls much of northeast Syria, hailed "historic" moments with the fall of Assad's "authoritarian regime".
Source: Qatar Tribune
