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Assad has fled Syria; Says he's ready to hand over power to the opposition

BEIRUT (AP) — The head of a Syrian opposition war monitor said early Sunday that President Bashar Assad left the country for an undisclosed location, fleeing ahead of insurgents who said they had entered Damascus after a stunning advance across the country.

The events suggested that the end of Assad's regime could be imminent after his bloody 14-year struggle to hold onto control as his country fragmented.

Rami Abdurrahman of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told The Associated Press that Assad took a flight Sunday from Damascus.

State television in Iran, Assad’s main backer in the years of war in Syria, reported that Assad had left the capital. It cited Qatar’s Al Jazeera news network for the information and did not elaborate.

There was no immediate statement from the Syrian government.

An Associated Press journalist in Damascus reported seeing groups of armed residents along the road in the outskirts of the capital and hearing sounds of gunshots. The city’s main police headquarters appeared to be abandoned, its door left ajar with no officers outside. Another AP journalist shot footage of an abandoned army checkpoint where uniforms were discarded on the ground under a poster of Assad’s face.

Residents of the capital reported hearing gunfire and explosions. Footage broadcast on opposition-linked media showed a tank in one of the capital's central squares while a small group of people gathered in celebration. Calls of “God is great” rang out from mosques.

It was the first time opposition forces had reached Damascus since 2018, when Syrian troops recaptured areas on the outskirts of the capital following a yearslong siege.

The pro-government Sham FM radio reported that the Damascus airport had been evacuated and all flights halted.

The insurgents also announced they had entered the notorious Saydnaya military prison north of the capital and “liberated" their prisoners there.

The night before, opposition forces took the central city of Homs, Syria's third largest, as government forces abandoned it. The city stands at an important intersection between Damascus, the capital, and Syria’s coastal provinces of Latakia and Tartus — the Syrian leader’s base of support and home to a Russian strategic naval base.

The government denied rumors that Assad had fled the country.

Sham FM reported that government forces took positions outside Homs without elaborating. Rami Abdurrahman who heads the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said Syrian troops and members of different security agencies withdrew from the city, adding that rebels entered parts of it.

The insurgency announced later Saturday that it had taken over Homs. The rebels had already seized the cities of Aleppo and Hama, as well as large parts of the south, in a lightning offensive that began Nov. 27. Analysts said rebel control of Homs would be a game-changer.

The rebels' moves into Damascus came after the Syrian army withdrew from much of southern part of the country, leaving more areas, including several provincial capitals, under the control of opposition fighters.

The fall of Damascus would leave government forces in control of only two of 14 provincial capitals: Latakia and Tartus.

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by Anonymousreply 181December 23, 2024 9:34 AM

Poor Tulsi.

What will she do now without her favorite dictator in power?

Well, second favorite dictator, after Putin.

Make that her third favorite dictator, after Trump.

by Anonymousreply 1December 8, 2024 4:15 AM

Slap him!

by Anonymousreply 2December 8, 2024 4:17 AM

The next regime will be just as awful, those countries will always be hellholes.

by Anonymousreply 3December 8, 2024 4:40 AM

I knew he would run. Always a coward. Gassing his own people. Disgusting. Fucking wimp.

by Anonymousreply 4December 8, 2024 5:21 AM

I wonder whether it'll become another muslim theocracy.

by Anonymousreply 5December 8, 2024 5:25 AM

Probably.

by Anonymousreply 6December 8, 2024 5:30 AM

the fuck? It's supposed to be year of the autocrats!

Bitches, why????

by Anonymousreply 7December 8, 2024 5:38 AM

One gang of muderes replacing another gang of murderers.

by Anonymousreply 8December 8, 2024 5:40 AM

What is the point of holding people in prison for so long for nothing.

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by Anonymousreply 9December 8, 2024 5:51 AM

Who are the rebels Bankers, who is financing their war!!

by Anonymousreply 10December 8, 2024 5:52 AM

According to social media, he's in Qatar. There was an unscheduled flight from Damascus to Syria earlier today that was being tracked by plane geeks.

by Anonymousreply 11December 8, 2024 5:55 AM

From Damascus to Qatar, I meant.

by Anonymousreply 12December 8, 2024 5:57 AM

👋👋👋

by Anonymousreply 13December 8, 2024 5:58 AM

[quote]Who are the rebels Bankers, who is financing their war!!

I think they get their main support from Turkey.

by Anonymousreply 14December 8, 2024 6:02 AM

Has Tim Walz commented?

by Anonymousreply 15December 8, 2024 6:03 AM

The news is a mess atm. Sky news was reporting that a plane went down in Syria tonight, but there’s no reason to leap to conclusions.

He’ll fine. He’s probably in Doha right this moment.

He will probably lead a comfortable, but cautious life, won’t he?

by Anonymousreply 16December 8, 2024 6:03 AM

His wife and children are in Russia - I would think he'd end up there.

by Anonymousreply 17December 8, 2024 6:06 AM

R17 = I hope Putin extorts every dime Assad has stolen and stashed away.

by Anonymousreply 18December 8, 2024 6:12 AM

[bold] BREAKING REPORTS [/bold] ...........Chaos at the Damascus airport. Mass evacuation. Rebels reportedly planning on storming it. Hoping to stop Assad or his henchmen fleeing. All flights cancelled. Lots of explosions reported in downtown.

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by Anonymousreply 19December 8, 2024 6:21 AM

Oh well.

by Anonymousreply 20December 8, 2024 6:26 AM

Where is our new head Intel officer Tulsi? Maybe they ran away together! True love always wins out! ❤️❤️❤️

by Anonymousreply 21December 8, 2024 6:31 AM

I wonder if people cheering this on realise that the insurgents Hayat Tahrir al-Sham are Al-Qaeda?

Sunshine and lollipops for everyone!

by Anonymousreply 22December 8, 2024 6:46 AM

They’re not al-Qaeda anymore.

Anyway, it’s SO fucking reassuring that a deft and sophisticated mind will be overseeing the U.S. response to this complex situation.

by Anonymousreply 23December 8, 2024 6:59 AM

Hopefully, we'll be running TRUMP out of the country in a year or two.

Add Musk and Ramyswamy to that list, too.

Oh, and Hegseth.

Make them all flee!

by Anonymousreply 24December 8, 2024 8:11 AM

Rumors that Assad's plane was shot down.

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by Anonymousreply 25December 8, 2024 8:26 AM

There will be dancing in the streets, if his plane was host down.

by Anonymousreply 26December 8, 2024 8:28 AM

Good riddance. He was a tyrant.

by Anonymousreply 27December 8, 2024 8:37 AM

The wife Asma Fawaz al-Assad is London born. She can't be thrilled to be in Russia if that is true, and her only option.

by Anonymousreply 28December 8, 2024 8:53 AM

"Syrian government falls in stunning end to 50-year rule of Assad family"

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by Anonymousreply 29December 8, 2024 9:00 AM

Donald Trump posted on social media:

[quote] Donald J. Trump@realDonaldTrump

[quote] Assad is gone. He has fled his country. His protector, Russia, Russia, Russia, led by Vladimir Putin, was not interested in protecting him any longer. There was no reason for Russia to be there in the first place. They lost all interest in Syria because of Ukraine, where close to 600,000 Russian soldiers lay wounded or dead, in a war that should never have started, and could go on forever. Russia and Iran are in a weakened state right now, one because of Ukraine and a bad economy, the other because of Israel and its fighting success. Likewise, Zelenskyy and Ukraine would like to make a deal and stop the madness. They have ridiculously lost 400,000 soldiers, and many more civilians. There should be an immediate ceasefire and negotiations should begin. Too many lives are being so needlessly wasted, too many families destroyed, and if it keeps going, it can turn into something much bigger, and far worse. I know Vladimir well. This is his time to act. China can help. The World is waiting!

I'm not going to post a link because it's on that shitty truth social.

by Anonymousreply 30December 8, 2024 9:06 AM

Well, I didn't have that on my 2024 geo-politics bingo card....just like every other fricking event in 2024.

It's been like one very long fireworks display leading to an apocalyptic crescendo.

Stay safe everyone

by Anonymousreply 31December 8, 2024 9:10 AM

So pleased those women and children have been released from that Slaughterhouse of a prison near Damascus. Hope the rebels find loads of paperwork regarding Tulsi in Assad's home. *Fingers crossed.

by Anonymousreply 32December 8, 2024 9:45 AM

One of the most murderous dictators of modern times. He brought us barrel bombs by the tens of thousands.

by Anonymousreply 33December 8, 2024 9:51 AM

If things keep getting worse after the fat fuck takes power I foresee this very scenario for the US.

by Anonymousreply 34December 8, 2024 12:44 PM

[quote]Poor Tulsi. What will she do now without her favorite dictator in power?

Gee, I hope Assad didn't leave any documents behind that spell out Tulsi's connections to his murderous regime.

by Anonymousreply 35December 8, 2024 12:51 PM

I’m sure Trump and Marco Rubio will know exactly what to do. This is an acute area of interest for them, undoubtedly.

by Anonymousreply 36December 8, 2024 1:01 PM

Dumps handlers wrote that response-he’s passed out from fried chicken over load.

by Anonymousreply 37December 8, 2024 1:34 PM

R34 Except I can't think of one single county that'd take him in. Putin would happily throw him to the wolves once he's outlived his usefulness.

by Anonymousreply 38December 8, 2024 1:41 PM

That Truth Social post had to have been written by his handlers. It is way too coherent to be him. It will be interesting to see what kind of regime rises from the void left behind. The Turks and the Israelis are licking their chops.

by Anonymousreply 39December 8, 2024 1:49 PM

Was curious how Bashar’s brother Bassel died in 1994-speeding to the airport for ski vaca. in Frankfort-he hit a highway barrier at 150 mph in his luxury Mercedes wearing no seatbelt and killed instantly at age 31-he was the cute one.

by Anonymousreply 40December 8, 2024 2:27 PM

R1: By Vishnu, you will not erase me and my undying love for her!!!

by Anonymousreply 41December 8, 2024 2:32 PM

Dump is scrambling to buy Mediterranean Sea-Front property in Syria.

by Anonymousreply 42December 8, 2024 2:32 PM

I guess Trump is off his promise to end the war in Ukraine in 24 hours. He seems childish and is inheriting a giant mess in the Middle East.

by Anonymousreply 43December 8, 2024 2:34 PM

Dust off those Nucs.

by Anonymousreply 44December 8, 2024 2:40 PM

Trump: “There should be an immediate ceasefire and negotiations should begin,” he wrote without specifying which conflict he was referring to.

by Anonymousreply 45December 8, 2024 2:50 PM

Don’t celebrate just yet. It’s just a change in management and the new ones are islamists.

by Anonymousreply 46December 8, 2024 2:54 PM

Think of all the resources Putin has poured into Syria for so long to support Assad - all for nothing, but humiliation and a demonstration of the futility of his backing.

by Anonymousreply 47December 8, 2024 3:12 PM

What’s an Aleppo?

by Anonymousreply 48December 8, 2024 3:13 PM

To R14, thank you for the information, I started "CARING" about the situation in Syria on Friday afternoon in the lounge at Dulles airport in Wash DC. I wasn't even following the news on Syria, until the "Hot older man" at the airport lounge brought it up!!

by Anonymousreply 49December 8, 2024 3:52 PM

[quote]I wonder if people cheering this on realise that the insurgents Hayat Tahrir al-Sham are Al-Qaeda?

This is the line J.D. Vance is taking this morning. But HTS cut off ties with Al-Qaeda/Islamic State and the evidence is that they've been competent administrators in the areas they've controlled, providing public services, and that they haven't discriminated against Syrian Christians. They're certainly not loathed and feared the way Islamic State was - they wouldn't have been able to capture territory so quickly if they were. They might turn out terrible but for the moment they're a huge improvement on Assad.

by Anonymousreply 50December 8, 2024 4:46 PM

[quote] That Truth Social post had to have been written by his handlers. It is way too coherent to be him.

That was not his original statement.

It was actually a follow-up to what Trump ORIGINALLY stated, which was MUCH worse.

I'm reposting the video from R29.

The reporter tells us that this was Trump's original response posted on Truth Social:

[quote] "...The United States should have nothing to do with it. This is not our fight."

THAT was his immediate and original response which was SCRUBBED from social media right away, and replaced with that other longer response.

I don't know why the "mainstream media" keeps getting away with shit like this.

What an irresponsible thing to post!!

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by Anonymousreply 51December 8, 2024 5:57 PM

Biden supposed to speak soon-his people are briefing him-no my mistake he is having trouble getting his briefs on-

by Anonymousreply 52December 8, 2024 6:03 PM

Assad in a bikini bottom.

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by Anonymousreply 53December 8, 2024 6:29 PM

Assad is somewhere is Russia.This should be fun going forward. At the very least we can be sure his hypocrite wife ‘’Miss Asma’’ is frustrated because she couldn’t take all her designer handbags-Bitch!

by Anonymousreply 54December 8, 2024 6:32 PM

Is the handsome guy the dead brother? He was hot.

by Anonymousreply 55December 8, 2024 6:35 PM

I was hoping they would have caught Assad first, and paraded him through the streets NAKED, before executing him.

by Anonymousreply 56December 8, 2024 6:35 PM

Aleppo is one of the oldest cities in the world. In the 20th century it was cosmopolitan and lovely, and a watering hole for international intellectuals and artists, and, like Beirut, French was widely spoken. After independence in 1946 Allepo and Damascus had a power struggle. They had been separate states before the French had forced a Federation back in 1923.

by Anonymousreply 57December 8, 2024 6:35 PM

Oh that would have been fun!

by Anonymousreply 58December 8, 2024 6:36 PM

It ought to be a glorious culture and country, instead it's in ruins. Fuck Assad, he should be hanged.

by Anonymousreply 59December 8, 2024 6:36 PM

KARMA

by Anonymousreply 60December 8, 2024 6:37 PM

Have you been in Damascus, Mr. Lawrence?

by Anonymousreply 61December 8, 2024 6:39 PM

Biden looks yellow.

by Anonymousreply 62December 8, 2024 6:41 PM

I fear that Syria will now become an Islamist fundamentalist state, just like Iran.

SAD!

by Anonymousreply 63December 8, 2024 6:45 PM

Should have sent Karine Jean-Pierre to speak he’s a distraction from the message. Get him out!

by Anonymousreply 64December 8, 2024 6:45 PM

[quote] Should have sent Karine Jean-Pierre to speak he’s a distraction from the message. Get him out!

To whom are you referring, R64?

by Anonymousreply 65December 8, 2024 6:51 PM

And I really do hope that Aleppo (and Beirut as well) returns to its former glory r57. That of course won't happen if Islamist assholes wind up running the place, but I do have a slim hope that for once Islamist assholes won't be the successors to a brutal, secular dictatorship in the Arab world.

by Anonymousreply 66December 8, 2024 7:13 PM

Are there a lot of Syrian Christians, as there are a lot of Lebanese Christians?

by Anonymousreply 67December 8, 2024 7:17 PM

People are probably wondering why the sudden change.

The funniest thing about this is, Assad had essentially won. Then he threw it all away at the worst possible time.

With major Russian and Iranian assistance, Assad had backed the resistance, a motley crew who hate each other almost as much as they hate Assad, into contained margins.

Syria was even admitted back into the Arab League recently.

But then Assad made a fatal error.

Recently Turkey and Assad had been talking about a final resolution, and Erdogan insisted that the Syrian refugees be returned to Syria. They’ve been taking care of them in Turkey for a decade. They are actually quite well behaved by and large, but it’s expensive, and there’s resentment, so whenever there’s some conflict between a Turk and a Syrian, it blows up into a huge deal.

Assad should have said yes. But he said no, and in fact demanded that Turkey withdraw all its troops from Syria. This was his final error. Recent events have gutted the support Assad got from Russia (the Ukraine War) and Iran (conflict with Israel). And the Turks knew this. So they gave the go ahead to resistance factions they supported to launch attacks.

Without Russian or Iranian support, the Assad forces collapsed like a house of cards. And here we are.

by Anonymousreply 68December 8, 2024 7:19 PM

Thank you for that explanation, R68!!!

This coup came out of left field, and I was honestly confused about how it happened.

So thank you for clearing that up.

by Anonymousreply 69December 8, 2024 7:25 PM

ISIS will make everything AOK.

by Anonymousreply 70December 8, 2024 7:27 PM

None of this matters. It’s the Middle East and like someone already stated: Same shit-Different day.

by Anonymousreply 71December 8, 2024 7:29 PM

Putin had no troops or weaponry to donate to efforts to keep Assad in power. With Hezbollah weakened, and Lebanon and Iran weakened and the war in Ukraine, etc. Putin was forced to take Assad in "for humanitarian reasons" (LOL!) and he and his family are in Moscow. And you know what? He is still dangerous to Syrians so he is gonna get assassinated. Boom, like that.

by Anonymousreply 72December 8, 2024 7:31 PM

[quote] ISIS will make everything AOK.

She represents my district!

by Anonymousreply 73December 8, 2024 7:31 PM

[quote] Trump urges US to stay out of Syrian civil war, blaming Obama for failure as Islamists close in on capital

JERUSALEM—President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday weighed in for the first time on the Syrian Islamist revolt against the country’s dictator Bashar al-Assad who is holed up in his palace in Damascus.

The radical Islamist movement reached the suburbs of the Syrian capital, Damascus, on Saturday and are preparing to storm the main bastion of Assad’s fledgling regime.

Trump warned on the social media platform Truth Social: "Syria is a mess, but is not our friend, & THE UNITED STATES SHOULD HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. THIS IS NOT OUR FIGHT. LET IT PLAY OUT. DO NOT GET INVOLVED!"

He took former President Obama to task for failing to enforce his "red line" in 2013 to launch military strikes against Assad after the Syrian strongman executed a shocking mass chemical weapons strike on civilians, in which more than 1,400 people were killed.

Critics accused Obama’s administration at the time of reneging on its promise to take military action against Assad for his crimes against humanity.

"This is where former President Obama refused to honor his commitment of protecting the RED LINE IN THE SAND, and all hell broke out, with Russia stepping in. But now they are, like possibly Assad himself, being forced out, and it may actually be the best thing that can happen to them. There was never much of a benefit in Syria for Russia, other than to make Obama look really stupid," wrote Trump.

He added "Opposition fighters in Syria, in an unprecedented move, have totally taken over numerous cities, in a highly coordinated offensive, and are now on the outskirts of Damascus, obviously preparing to make a very big move toward taking out Assad. Russia, because they are so tied up in Ukraine, and with the loss there of over 600,000 soldiers, seems incapable of stopping this literal march through Syria, a country they have protected for years."

Also on Saturday, the Israeli military, which is on high alert, announced, "A short while ago, an attack was carried out by armed individuals at a U.N. post in the Hader area in Syria. The IDF is currently assisting the U.N. forces in repelling the attack."

The IDF added that it has deployed "reinforced forces in the Golan Heights area and will continue to operate in order to protect the State of Israel and its citizens."

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by Anonymousreply 74December 8, 2024 7:40 PM

Bibi taking credit for fall of Assad. He’s a hero and all crimes are forgiven.

by Anonymousreply 75December 8, 2024 7:42 PM

Trump’s response is complete gibberish. One moment he’s blaming Obama for not intervening, next moment he’s claiming it’s not our business and we should stay out of it.

Pick an argument, stupid.

by Anonymousreply 76December 8, 2024 7:43 PM

I hope Mrs Assad brought her own hospital with her-she sounds like she’s going to need one.

by Anonymousreply 77December 8, 2024 7:45 PM

[quote] Trump’s response is complete gibberish

Worse than that, when did he start talking like a Valley Girl??

[bold]But [italic]now they are, like possibly[/italic] Assad himself, being forced out, and it may actually be the best thing that can happen to them. There was never much of a benefit in Syria for Russia, other than to make Obama look really stupid," wrote Trump.[/bold]

[bold]He added "Opposition fighters in Syria, in an unprecedented move, [italic]have totally taken over[/italic] numerous cities[/bold]

by Anonymousreply 78December 8, 2024 7:50 PM

I’m ill and won’t be around long so I’m enjoying Trump’s hilarious antics.Won’t effect me and he is what most of America wanted.

by Anonymousreply 80December 8, 2024 7:54 PM

[quote] his hypocrite wife ‘’Miss Asma’’ is frustrated because she couldn’t take all her designer handbags

I feel you, Asma!

by Anonymousreply 81December 8, 2024 8:14 PM

Russian media says he’s in Moscow now.

by Anonymousreply 82December 8, 2024 8:36 PM

I hope he freezes to death in the Russian winter.

by Anonymousreply 83December 8, 2024 8:55 PM

[quote] Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his family are in Moscow under asylum, Russian news agencies say

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."

[italic]This is a developing story that will be updated.[/italic]

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by Anonymousreply 84December 8, 2024 9:07 PM

Asshat has fled Syria

by Anonymousreply 85December 8, 2024 9:11 PM

[quote] President Assad of Syria has arrived in Moscow. Russia has granted them (him and his family) asylum on humanitarian grounds

So nice that he's being granted HUMANITARIAN asylum.

Considering that this is a fucking MURDERER who conducted chemical attacks against thousands of his own people.

He should be DRAGGED THROUGH THE STREETS, and not granted asylum.

by Anonymousreply 86December 8, 2024 9:15 PM

[quote] But HTS cut off ties with Al-Qaeda/Islamic State and the evidence is that they've been competent administrators in the areas they've controlled…

That is the evidence because they are no longer funded by Iran and are now entirely bankrolled by the CIA.

[quote] They might turn out terrible

They will.

I want to direct everyone to post-Hussein Iraq, post-Gaddafi Libya, post-post-Taliban Afghanistan…

The USA CANNOT externally shock other political spheres into adopting liberal Western values. The population has to be ready for it and it is not. The USA has been met the failure every time this is attempted. Let’s prepare for even more millions of refugees to flood into the West.

This will be more disaster and is nothing to celebrate.

This is not a personal attack on you but I am very pessimistic.

by Anonymousreply 87December 8, 2024 9:42 PM

Are you guys seeing the footage of the rebels opening up the prison cells? It is heartbreaking. Little kids. Deep underground. Horrible. And twitter is running footage of Tulsi Gabbard from a few years ago, praising Assad, her buddy. I hope she gets demonized by the media. They should treat her the way they treated Hillary in2016.

by Anonymousreply 88December 8, 2024 9:45 PM

I share your concerns, R87, but Assad had to be removed, as should be any authoritarian who locked up children and used biological weapons (on his own people, nonetheless.) If anything, Turkey will now be the real power broker in Syria and I'd rather have them play that role than Putin. Also, I hope we learned something from the issues arising from the Arab Spring and that the power vacuum which would enable extremists to take over will be prevented. Also, this cuts off Iran from its proxy militias in Syria and Lebanon.

by Anonymousreply 89December 8, 2024 9:50 PM

r79 "Ziono-deathcult?" Your opinion is worthless.

And this Defacto boogeyman you're obsessed with hasn't been on DL in years.

by Anonymousreply 90December 8, 2024 10:20 PM

[quote]The USA CANNOT externally shock other political spheres into adopting liberal Western values. The population has to be ready for it and it is not. The USA has been met the failure every time this is attempted. Let’s prepare for even more millions of refugees to flood into the West.

Exactly. They don't want democracy. They are feudal, tribal societies and always were. They also eat, sleep, breathe and shit Islam. They culture, belief systems and general way of life is completely opposite of the West and totally foreign. And they want it that way. Western leaders have STILL not learned this in all these many years. There is nothing that can be done. These people want to live in Medieval times and there's nothing that external forces can do to change that.

by Anonymousreply 91December 8, 2024 10:23 PM

So long as the Arabs fight tribe against tribe, so long will they be a little people, a silly people - greedy, barbarous, and cruel.

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by Anonymousreply 92December 8, 2024 10:27 PM

I have video footage of the clip Trump uses to prep for foreign policy questions:

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by Anonymousreply 93December 8, 2024 10:33 PM

[quote]And twitter is running footage of Tulsi Gabbard from a few years ago, praising Assad, her buddy. I hope she gets demonized by the media. They should treat her the way they treated Hillary in2016.

Tulsi Gabbard is such a fucking pig.

by Anonymousreply 94December 8, 2024 10:40 PM
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by Anonymousreply 95December 8, 2024 10:45 PM

Putin still has 2 big naval bases on the Syrian coast crucial for Russia's Mediterranean fleet. The new regime has kindly said it currently has no plans to seize them.

by Anonymousreply 96December 8, 2024 10:53 PM

[quote] I hope we learned something from the issues arising from the Arab Spring

"We" certainly have, but the persons soon to be in control of American foreign policy haven't. But—and this may come as a consolation to some posters upthread—they have no interest in spreading democracy and "Western liberal values," either, even in their own country.

by Anonymousreply 97December 8, 2024 10:59 PM

Crazy that he was only surviving because of Russian backing.

by Anonymousreply 98December 8, 2024 11:03 PM

r97 the Democrats are just as clueless about Western values in the Middle East and North Africa. It's a bipartisan thing.

by Anonymousreply 99December 8, 2024 11:07 PM

R98, Syria was strategic geographically and it was a base of operations for Putin to continue his program of destabilizing the Middle East. Within this rebellion are factions who will fight among themselves. Putin is going to back more than one of them to hedge his bets, and don't be surprised if the next regime is not necessarily as brutal as ASsad, but just as friendly to RUssia. It is so easy to buy people off. Putin has billions and they come cheap.

by Anonymousreply 100December 8, 2024 11:09 PM

Putin is dictator for life, and he's only 72 so he could be a problem for many years to come.

by Anonymousreply 101December 8, 2024 11:10 PM

What happened to "Putin is dying of cancer"?

by Anonymousreply 102December 8, 2024 11:20 PM

I remember when Bashar first inherited power there was much hopeful speculation that he would be a "benevolent autocrat" due to his apparent lack of interest in politics or power prior to Bassel's death, his training as a physician, and some time spent in the west (London) receiving specialty training in opthalmology. Didn't turn out that way.

R102 - he may very well have had cancer and received successful treatment. He's somewhat reclusive and did disappear from public view on occasion from days to a few weeks at a time. The other rumor was Parkinsons. That was based on an odd gait.

by Anonymousreply 103December 8, 2024 11:28 PM

[quote]Putin still has 2 big naval bases on the Syrian coast crucial for Russia's Mediterranean fleet. The new regime has kindly said it currently has no plans to seize them.

Maybe Israel should destroy them.

by Anonymousreply 104December 8, 2024 11:51 PM

Pootz is running short on cash, tho. He was supporting Hezbollah, Assad, and dumping money into Ukraine’s meat grinder.

His money is slowly getting cut off and he grows ever more isolated. Now two of his proxies have collapsed and his terra cotta bitch won’t be able to do fuck all to “help” for another month. IF either of those dead men walking lasts that long.

by Anonymousreply 105December 8, 2024 11:59 PM

Seeing all the people rescued from Syrian prisons puts me in mind of Soviet terror under Stalin. He wanted more and still more citizens arrested, regardless of guilt, to induce terror so the populace could be controlled. I can think of no other reason for Assad to have locked up so many people, some for decades, kept from their families. Ventilation to the underground cells no longer works, so the rebels are racing to open those cells.

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by Anonymousreply 106December 9, 2024 12:05 AM

[quote]That is the evidence because they are no longer funded by Iran and are now entirely bankrolled by the CIA.

This is nonsense. Their funding is coming from Turkey, which has a direct interest in supporting them. Some people apparently want to believe the delusional idea that the US secretly controls everything on the planet.

by Anonymousreply 107December 9, 2024 12:13 AM

[Quote] Maybe Israel should destroy them.

I mean why not, they’re destroying everything else ….

by Anonymousreply 108December 9, 2024 12:33 AM

[Quote] Crazy that he was only surviving because of Russian backing.

And Iranian. Russian air assets, Iranians on the ground.

by Anonymousreply 109December 9, 2024 12:35 AM

[Quote] [R79] "Ziono-deathcult?" Your opinion is worthless

So true!!! It’s not like there are people right here on DL defending the most obvious genocide ever, and even reveling in the deaths of children and hoping for more.

by Anonymousreply 110December 9, 2024 12:37 AM

I want to know too, what happened to Putin's cancer? Although I read a report his leg was acting weird in a public meeting

by Anonymousreply 111December 9, 2024 12:38 AM

Maybe it's true, there is a cure for cancer and they only saving it on "VIPs"

by Anonymousreply 112December 9, 2024 12:39 AM

r110 fuck off with your genocide shit. It's war.

by Anonymousreply 113December 9, 2024 12:41 AM

I love spy novels. There's one author I discovered who wrote a book about spies in Syria, and it was edge of the seat tension. Well written. It also showed what a hopelessly divided factional society existed in Syria. No one trusted anyone and you could get disappeared in the blink of an eye. It's called Damascus Station, by David McCloskey and it is excellent if you're into that genre. In fact he writes some great stuff. He is former CIA. It's a novel but it is fact based in terms of that environment.

by Anonymousreply 114December 9, 2024 12:44 AM

R113, you sound just like a Nazi saying “there was a WAR” when the allies found the concentration camps.

“There was a war so all these Jews and communists and homosexuals would have helped the allies. We had to do it. It’s the allies fault actually.”

by Anonymousreply 115December 9, 2024 12:45 AM

STFU r115. It's war. Take your anti-Semite shit elsewhere.

by Anonymousreply 116December 9, 2024 12:50 AM

R116, proving points for over a generation.

And of course “STFU” because arguing with a ziono crazy is like having a debate with a closed system. There’s no room in this world for any opinion but his.

by Anonymousreply 117December 9, 2024 1:45 AM

"Ziono" is all we need to know about you. It's not worth our time.

by Anonymousreply 118December 9, 2024 1:49 AM

Back to the topic AT HAND, please!

[quote] The USA CANNOT externally shock other political spheres into adopting liberal Western values

The question again, were there a sizable number of Christians in Syria, as there are in Lebanon?

by Anonymousreply 119December 9, 2024 4:29 AM

Syrian Christians are currently only about 2% of the population. Muslim-majority countries do everything they can to get the Christians out.

by Anonymousreply 120December 9, 2024 4:32 AM

So does this mean that all of the Syrian refugees can go back home?

Asking for a friend.

by Anonymousreply 121December 9, 2024 4:45 AM

So if Assad is in Russia, how long till he "falls" out a window.....Put in has got to want to keep those bases in Syria

by Anonymousreply 122December 9, 2024 4:48 AM

[quote] Gunmen storm Iranian embassy in Damascus as Russia claims Assad left 'instructions' to 'transfer power'

A group of unknown gunmen stormed the Iranian embassy in Damascus on Sunday after Islamist rebels took the city and overthrew the regime of Bashar Assad, who the Russian Foreign Ministry says fled the country and left "instructions" for a transfer of power.

Iranian state television reported on the embassy incident, saying they did not believe the gunmen were affiliated with the wider rebel group that took the city. Iran had withdrawn most of its officials and their families on Saturday, leaving only a handful of diplomats.

"It is said that the Iranian embassy was stormed alongside nearby stores by an armed group different from the group now controlling [most of] Syria," Iranian state TV said, referring to Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) which spearheaded recent rebel advances.

Arab and Iranian media have shared footage from inside the embassy's premises, where assailants rummaged through furniture and documents inside the building and damaged some windows.

Assad and his British-born wife, Asma al-Assad, fled Damascus with their three children this weekend, according to Syrian television reports. It was not known where they were headed.

A video statement from a group of men on Syrian state TV said that Assad had been overthrown and all prisoners have been set free.

Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi al-Jalali said early Sunday he didn't know the whereabouts of Assad. He told the Saudi television network Al-Arabiyya that they lost communication Saturday night.

Russia's Foreign Ministry said in a Telegram post Sunday that Assad left Syria following negotiations with rebel groups, and that the long-time Syrian leader had left "instructions" to "transfer power peacefully." The Russian ministry said the Kremlin was not directly involved in those discussions.

Crowds of Syrians gathered in the central squares of Damascus to celebrate the news of Assad's departure. Some chanted anti-Assad slogans and honked horns. In other areas, celebratory gunshots rang out.

Syria has been embroiled in a bloody, nearly 14-year civil war as Islamist rebels looked to overthrow the Assad dynasty. The apparent collapse of more than 50 years of Assad family rule over the Syrian Arabian Republic is a monumental turning point in Middle East politics.

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by Anonymousreply 123December 9, 2024 5:10 AM

Iran uses Arabic script, but its language is not Arabic or even related linguistically to Arabic, so a search for documents would not turn up anything useful for the looters, unless they happened to have learned Farsi (Persian) in school. Long story short, Iran supported Assad, the people of Syria have hated him for the past dozen years or so, so Iran will not have influence there for some time to come.

by Anonymousreply 124December 9, 2024 9:15 AM

[quote]What’s an Aleppo?

One of the Marx Brothers.

by Anonymousreply 125December 9, 2024 9:40 AM

[quote] What’s an Aleppo?

A pepper.

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by Anonymousreply 126December 9, 2024 11:33 AM

Who is in control?

by Anonymousreply 127December 9, 2024 1:29 PM

Former Al-Qaeda rebels.

by Anonymousreply 128December 9, 2024 2:16 PM

[quote]The USA CANNOT externally shock other political spheres into adopting liberal Western values. The population has to be ready for it and it is not.

Last time I looked, neither was the USA's population.

by Anonymousreply 129December 9, 2024 2:28 PM

What a funny joke r129!

by Anonymousreply 130December 9, 2024 2:34 PM

The so called rebel leader used to be a member of Al Qaeda and he allegedly "changed." He claims he wants all religions to live peaceably together, he claims that while Syria is an Islamist state he will not denounce secularism or force extremist beliefs on anyone.... we shall see. And of course there's the whole Sunnie vs. Shia thing going on too.

by Anonymousreply 131December 9, 2024 2:55 PM

Putin will take good care of Bashar and family. Their in Moscow under asylum-their probably under arrest.

by Anonymousreply 132December 9, 2024 3:33 PM

Stories are just beginning to come out about the horrors experienced in Assad's prisons. It gave me chills. I also have to wonder. They have f reed most of the prisoners, but they may find more. And the guards who tortured them, I want to know what happens to them? Because the beatings and the torture were relentless. And it seems to me the people who inflicted these punishments ought to have their reckoning. I hope they get slaughtered in the public square. What kind of animal would they have to be to commit such atrocities.

by Anonymousreply 133December 9, 2024 3:37 PM

All very suspicious. So Putin's just going to forego all the inve$tment he's made in this debacle- and welcome Assie 'home' with open arms?

Now Syria has no electricity, no government and an influx of 'refugees' returning to... what?

by Anonymousreply 134December 9, 2024 3:40 PM

[Quote] "Ziono" is all we need to know about you. It's not worth our time.

Speak a phrase of cognitive dissonance to a cultist and they will rotely reply the same way every time.

Here, it’s “you point out errors in our cult so we will tune you out.”

by Anonymousreply 135December 9, 2024 3:41 PM

[quote]What kind of animal would they have to be to commit such atrocities.

You must not be familiar with Islam.

by Anonymousreply 136December 9, 2024 3:55 PM

r135 go to Gaza and see how much they love your gay ass.

by Anonymousreply 137December 9, 2024 3:55 PM

I'm sure Putin has set the Assad family up in some fabulous palace somewhere around Moscow and are providing round the clock protection.

by Anonymousreply 138December 9, 2024 3:58 PM

I would have went to Qatar or UAE, Assad Jr made a mistake to go to Russia.

Assad Jr wife is a British citizen, I'm guessing plenty of Jrs $$$$ is in the Island of Jersey, Guernsey, or Isle of Man.

Switzerland of course.

by Anonymousreply 139December 9, 2024 4:09 PM

Axios: The U.S. is working with several other countries in the Middle East to prevent chemical weapons possessed by the Assad regime from falling into the wrong hands. The U.S. and its allies are concerned that the collapse of the Syrian army and other security forces — and the chaos engulfing the country — will allow terrorist groups to seize dangerous weapons held by the Assad regime.

by Anonymousreply 140December 9, 2024 4:14 PM

[Quote] [R135] go to Gaza and see how much they love your gay ass.

Most predictable schtick ever.

1) we are not committing genocide!

2) you are a bigot against us for saying we are committing genocide!

3) yes we are committing genocide but they deserve it!

It’s cult behavior 100%.

by Anonymousreply 141December 9, 2024 4:24 PM

r141 the only cult is the one you belong to.

by Anonymousreply 142December 9, 2024 4:27 PM

“I know you are but what am I???” is about as mature as I’d expect from you, off-his-meds-Matt.

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by Anonymousreply 143December 9, 2024 4:29 PM

r143 your defense of Palestinians is nauseating. And this Matt boogeyman hasn't been on DL in years.

by Anonymousreply 144December 9, 2024 4:33 PM

It's war. Israel was attacked and they responded in kind.

by Anonymousreply 145December 9, 2024 4:34 PM

[quote]off-his-meds-Matt.

Wow, he really got in your head, didn't he?

by Anonymousreply 146December 9, 2024 5:01 PM

There are a few people here who are obsessed with some long-ago posters who haven't been on DL in years, who knows if these posters are even still alive. It's a paranoia I've never seen anywhere else. Odd.

by Anonymousreply 147December 9, 2024 5:02 PM

R139 any new government can make a claim about a former leader's money in Switzerland and Switzerland freezes the accounts and investigates. There have been successes and failures for the restitution of a country's wealth.

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by Anonymousreply 148December 9, 2024 5:47 PM

Following the Assad family’s ‘’stay’’ in Moscow will be interesting. Poetic Justice I say regarding Miss Asma. Such hypocrisy ‘’We care about all the children’’ no you care about ALL of your children. Bitch stayed that monster now she sick-good.

by Anonymousreply 149December 9, 2024 5:49 PM

I expect Assad is safe in Moscow. Putin has enough experience in intelligence and managing human "assets" he needs to be able to assure other assets they'll have safe refuge with him if it comes to that.

by Anonymousreply 150December 9, 2024 5:59 PM

Matt may not have been on DL in years but the loud voices in his head certainly have. As well as his sock puppets.

by Anonymousreply 151December 9, 2024 6:15 PM

If the U S. doesn't rush over there and take over it will become South Sudan-meets-Haiti. But Turd has already said it's not our problem.

by Anonymousreply 152December 9, 2024 7:45 PM

[QUOTE]I'm sure Putin has set the Assad family up in some fabulous palace somewhere around Moscow and are providing round the clock protection.

The Assad family is said to own at least a couple dozen luxury apartments in Moscow's skyscraper district. Smart. Those windows don't open.

by Anonymousreply 153December 9, 2024 9:08 PM

[quote] And the guards who tortured them, I want to know what happens to them? Because the beatings and the torture were relentless. And it seems to me the people who inflicted these punishments ought to have their reckoning.

Let's hope so.

They should not get away from this unscathed.

by Anonymousreply 154December 9, 2024 9:39 PM

Trump Is saying stay out of it, because Putin is going to handle it. Syria belongs to Putin. Even now.

by Anonymousreply 155December 10, 2024 12:29 AM

Putin plot to bait the U S. into making Syria the 51st state. Twenty years of a black hole where trillions will disappear (Afghanistan redux).

by Anonymousreply 156December 10, 2024 2:24 AM

Russia helped prop up Assad and his murderous regime for at least two decades.

by Anonymousreply 157December 10, 2024 2:45 AM

R156, I'm reading Ghost Wars by Steve Coll right now. Just started It reads like a novel but it's non fiction.

by Anonymousreply 158December 10, 2024 2:42 PM

R156 you are a moron.

by Anonymousreply 159December 10, 2024 3:09 PM

Assad is fucked. He’s of completely no use to Putin. Putin is fucked because he’s going to lose Russia’s only warm water port, and all the hardware left there. Not to mention those ports were the main way Russia supplied and maintained all their missions in Africa. Nobody believes his ridiculous Nuclear threats, his North Korean troops are nothing but cannon fodder, and NATO is quickly shoring up against him militarily and financially. Plus Biden just gave another Billion to Ukraine, and NATO said they’re distributing all Russia’s frozen accounts directly to Ukraine.

by Anonymousreply 160December 10, 2024 3:25 PM

[quote]I would have went to Qatar or UAE

Jesus Christ. Pick up a grammar book. Or do a Google search.

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by Anonymousreply 161December 10, 2024 3:32 PM

Stop acting like a weird idiot, R161.

by Anonymousreply 162December 10, 2024 3:34 PM

I'm not the one who writes like an uneducated moron, R162.

by Anonymousreply 163December 10, 2024 3:37 PM

To R162, let the person post what he wants.

by Anonymousreply 164December 10, 2024 3:47 PM

"You can't fire me, I quit!" Maybe he can inspire Putin to do the same.

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by Anonymousreply 165December 10, 2024 4:13 PM

We've got our own dicktator to worry about.

by Anonymousreply 166December 10, 2024 4:41 PM

What’s the orange traitor, Miss Thang, Ron Johnson, Rand Paul and Bernie Sanders gonna do when Vlad ain’t around to give them marching orders any more?

Yes, I said fucking Bernie. In 1989.

by Anonymousreply 167December 10, 2024 10:45 PM

I must say, he has very womanly rounded hips.

by Anonymousreply 168December 10, 2024 11:12 PM

This just in’’Bashar Al-Assad has accidentally fallen out the window of a high rise he was considering adding to his real estate portfolio in Moscow. Sources say he was taking measurements and something happened.

by Anonymousreply 169December 11, 2024 2:46 AM

Syrian commandos form the new government will find him.

by Anonymousreply 170December 11, 2024 3:55 AM

Assad is gonna get assassinated and Putin will make it look like the Syrian rebels did it. That's obvious. The media will be all shocked, but they ought to know by now how things work with Vlad. He intends to secure his ports and his strategic position in Syria and if it means giving up Assad, he will happily do it.

by Anonymousreply 171December 11, 2024 4:08 AM

Was Russia Assad’s only option? Maybe he should have shopped around before climbing on to the foxes head to stay out of deep water.

by Anonymousreply 172December 11, 2024 5:11 AM

Yuck

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by Anonymousreply 173December 11, 2024 7:29 AM

he's so femme

by Anonymousreply 174December 11, 2024 7:31 AM

I posted upthread about the reason Turkey turned the Islamist militias free to attack Assad’s forces. I’ve just heard from a friend from college who is Kurdish and returned to Iraq when Saddam was overthrown. She works in the provisional government in the Kurdish zone in Iraq. She had lots of interesting tea. She can’t always email so I was very glad to hear from her.

1) Assad was out of money. The peace that prevailed for five years dried up contributions and he could no longer afford to pay his army or buy gasoline (petrol). So he had to reduce the size of his military and many experienced soldiers were furloughed. His units were also chronically short of fuel and in the recent fighting many armoured vehicles just ran out of gas and were abandoned.

2) when Assad reduced the size of the army, he tried to reform and reorganize it, but it was handled very badly and it ended up creating mayhem and morale was actually worse in the army, not better. Men who had fought together for years were stupidly separated, etc.

3) previously there had been some local Christian support for the regime (they were very worried about islamists) but this time around the local pro-regime forces just left as refugees.

4) the Turks encouraged the islamists to adopt and perfect drone tactics like the Ukrainians developed starting in 2022. The Turks are big drone fans and in fact provided the famous bayraktar drones that Ukraine used so successfully in 2022. The Islamists used drones to very great success against Assad forces.

5) the Kurds are very worried, and in fact there has already been fighting between them and the islamists. Turkey backs the Islamists and Israel backs the Kurds, but the Kurds know they’re just being used by Israel and they suspect Israel will abandon them, because Israel is trying to rebuild its relationship with Turkey, a very powerful regional player.

A Kurdish fighter she knows wrote her that they found a destroyed Assadist T-62 and then investigated the tank. The driver was dead inside. Next to him were very touching family photos of the dead man with his wife and a smiling little girl. Things that for us are “events overseas” and “not the fucking Middle East AGAIN” are literally life and death for the people involved.

by Anonymousreply 175December 11, 2024 6:36 PM

An interesting article from a month or so ago. The Assad regime was also propped by the money from drug manufacturing and trafficking.

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by Anonymousreply 176December 11, 2024 7:00 PM

Oh one other thing I forgot to mention. The Russians rushed a couple of squadrons of fighter bomber jets down to Syria to try to stop the advance, but what struck people was how ineffective the bombing was.

They said when the Americans bombed, the bombs usually came right down on whatever the target was and it got blown to smithereens. The Russian bombs weee just kind of random, like the pilots weee so afraid of surface to air missiles they just got rid of their bombs asap so they could get out of Dodge asap.

by Anonymousreply 177December 11, 2024 7:15 PM

^^^ were what’s with this weee shit lol

by Anonymousreply 178December 11, 2024 7:16 PM

Were

by Anonymousreply 179December 11, 2024 7:31 PM

Wifey filed for divorce and wants to move back to the UK. Gee, she was fine with everything up until now.

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by Anonymousreply 180December 23, 2024 8:27 AM

Re R173, perhaps because this is DL, I’ve long suspected that Assad’s wife was a beard.

by Anonymousreply 181December 23, 2024 9:34 AM
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