Octopus Overlords

On 7 December 2024, Syrian opposition Southern Operations Room forces entered the Rif Dimashq region from the south, and came within 20 kilometres (12 mi) of the capital Damascus. The Syrian Army withdrew from multiple points in the outskirts. Concurrently with the advance towards Damascus, opposition Tahrir al-Sham and the Syrian National Army in the north launched an offensive into Homs city, while the Syrian Free Army advanced onto the capital from the South-East.

Max Peck wrote: Sat Dec 07, 2024 4:07 pm Wikipedia is a weak-assed source,

The IL-76T cargo plane allegedly carrying Bashar al-Assad, the now-former President of the Syrian Arab Republic, has reportedly crashed near the town of Al-Suwayri after disappearing from radar. Assad’s departure from Damascus came amid the total collapse of his regime, marking the end of 61 years of Ba’athist rule and the beginning of a new chapter in Syria’s turbulent history.

The crash follows Assad’s dramatic attempt to flee the country as rebel forces seized control of Damascus. The Syrian Arab Army, once a symbol of regime strength, capitulated under the weight of internal disorganisation and a coordinated rebel offensive. Witness reports suggest the plane, en route to an unknown destination—possibly Russia—displayed erratic flight behaviour before its abrupt disappearance. Assad, a licensed pilot, is speculated to have been at the controls, though the exact circumstances remain unclear. Wreckage near Al-Suwayri is yet to be independently verified.

Isgrimnur wrote: Sat Dec 07, 2024 11:41 pm Sri Lanka Guardian

The IL-76T cargo plane allegedly carrying Bashar al-Assad, the now-former President of the Syrian Arab Republic, has reportedly crashed near the town of Al-Suwayri after disappearing from radar. Assad’s departure from Damascus came amid the total collapse of his regime, marking the end of 61 years of Ba’athist rule and the beginning of a new chapter in Syria’s turbulent history.

The crash follows Assad’s dramatic attempt to flee the country as rebel forces seized control of Damascus. The Syrian Arab Army, once a symbol of regime strength, capitulated under the weight of internal disorganisation and a coordinated rebel offensive. Witness reports suggest the plane, en route to an unknown destination—possibly Russia—displayed erratic flight behaviour before its abrupt disappearance. Assad, a licensed pilot, is speculated to have been at the controls, though the exact circumstances remain unclear. Wreckage near Al-Suwayri is yet to be independently verified.

Kraken wrote: Sat Dec 07, 2024 10:35 pm

Max Peck wrote: Sat Dec 07, 2024 4:07 pm Wikipedia is a weak-assed source,

Not really. It's generally quite solid, and more respected than it was in its early days.

Max Peck wrote: Sun Dec 08, 2024 1:37 am

Kraken wrote: Sat Dec 07, 2024 10:35 pm

Max Peck wrote: Sat Dec 07, 2024 4:07 pm Wikipedia is a weak-assed source,

Not really. It's generally quite solid, and more respected than it was in its early days.

Given that there was no actual "Battle of Damascus", I feel vindicated.

AMMAN/BEIRUT/CAIRO, Dec 8 (Reuters) - Syrian rebels declared President Bashar al-Assad's ouster after seizing control of Damascus on Sunday, ending his family's iron-fisted rule after more than 13 years of civil war in a seismic moment for the Middle East.

The Islamist rebels also dealt a major blow to the influence of Russia and Iran in the region, key allies who propped up Assad during critical moments in the conflict.
Iran's embassy was stormed by Syrian rebels following their capture of Damascus, Iran's English-language Press TV reported on Sunday.

Isgrimnur wrote: Sat Dec 07, 2024 11:41 pm Sri Lanka Guardian

The IL-76T cargo plane allegedly carrying Bashar al-Assad, the now-former President of the Syrian Arab Republic, has reportedly crashed near the town of Al-Suwayri after disappearing from radar. Assad’s departure from Damascus came amid the total collapse of his regime, marking the end of 61 years of Ba’athist rule and the beginning of a new chapter in Syria’s turbulent history.

The crash follows Assad’s dramatic attempt to flee the country as rebel forces seized control of Damascus. The Syrian Arab Army, once a symbol of regime strength, capitulated under the weight of internal disorganisation and a coordinated rebel offensive. Witness reports suggest the plane, en route to an unknown destination—possibly Russia—displayed erratic flight behaviour before its abrupt disappearance. Assad, a licensed pilot, is speculated to have been at the controls, though the exact circumstances remain unclear. Wreckage near Al-Suwayri is yet to be independently verified.

Victoria Raverna wrote: Sun Dec 08, 2024 6:50 am Is this outcome good for US?

Grifman wrote: Sun Dec 08, 2024 9:31 am

Victoria Raverna wrote: Sun Dec 08, 2024 6:50 am Is this outcome good for US?

Unknown if this is good for anybody. It all depends on what the various rebel groups do now. Hopefully it will be good for the Syrian people.

Grifman wrote: Sun Dec 08, 2024 9:29 am Appears to be just rumor, no crash site has been discovered.

LawBeefaroni wrote: Sun Dec 08, 2024 10:05 am His wife is from London, born and raised. Educated at Queen's and King's colleges. There's a decent amount of fandom based on that.

Syria's Bashar al-Assad and his family have arrived in Russia and have been granted asylum by the Russian authorities, Russian news agencies reported on Sunday, citing a Kremlin source.

The Interfax news agency quoted the unnamed source as saying: "President Assad of Syria has arrived in Moscow. Russia has granted them (him and his family) asylum on humanitarian grounds."

Max Peck wrote: Tue Dec 10, 2024 10:19 am In the ever-depressing Realpolitik File, I'm seeing speculation that if most countries refuse to deal with HTS due to it's history then Russia may be able to cut a deal with them to preserve it's strategic assets in Syria. That seems like it would be a huge betrayal of the Syrian people and I'd hope that HTS would tell them to pound sand, but then I remembered this timeline we're in.

Israel's incursion in the southwest and its airstrikes on bases of the defeated army create an additional security problem for the new administration, although Israel insists its intervention is temporary.

After Assad's flight on Sunday ended more than five decades of his family's rule, Israeli troops moved into the buffer zone inside Syria established following the 1973 Middle East war.

Three security sources said on Tuesday the Israelis had advanced beyond the demilitarised zone. One Syrian source said they had reached the town of Qatana, several km (miles) to the east of the buffer zone and a short drive from Damascus airport.

Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz said he had ordered a "sterile defensive zone" to be created in southern Syria to protect Israel from terrorism.
Military spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani said troops were in the buffer zone and "a few additional points" in the vicinity, the first apparent official Israeli acknowledgement that they had moved beyond it. He said, however, that there had been no significant push into Syria.

"We are not involved in what's happening in Syria internally, we are not a side in this conflict and we do not have any interest other than protecting our borders and the security of our citizens," Shoshani said.

Katz also said Israel's navy had destroyed Syria's fleet.

Regional security sources and officers within the defunct Syrian army described Tuesday morning's Israeli air strikes as the heaviest yet, hitting military installations and air bases across Syria and destroying dozens of helicopters and jets.

Turkey, Egypt, Qatar and Saudi Arabia have condemned the Israeli incursion.

Katz also said Israel's navy had destroyed Syria's fleet.

The BBC has verified videos showing blasts at the port of Latakia in Syria, with footage appearing to show extensive damage to ships and parts of the port.