A coalition of terrorist groups in Syria, headed by the Islamist faction Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, has upended Syria’s civil war after a long stalemate. Their lightning offensive, taking over several key cities in just days, is the most direct challenge to President Bashar al-Assad’s power in years and has brought an end to his rule.
US President, Joe Biden, welcomed the fall of the Assad regime in remarks from the White House.
The US leader described it as a “historic opportunity for the long-suffering people of Syria to build a better future” while cautioning that it was also a moment of risk and uncertainty in the region.
The Syrian civil war started 13 years ago, beginning during the Arab Spring and escalating into a bloody, multifaceted conflict involving domestic opposition groups, extremist factions and international powers, including the United States, Iran and Russia. More than 500,000 Syrians have died, and millions more have fled their homes.
In just over a week, the terrorist’s forces seized much of Syria’s northwest from the government in a fast-moving attack. First, the rebels seized Syria’s largest city, Aleppo, then days later blazed through Hama and the strategic city of Homs. On Sunday, they reached Syria’s capital, Damascus.
After several years of war, the Assad government clawed back much of the territory it lost to rebels with the help of Iran, Russia, and Lebanon’s Hezbollah militia. But those allies have recently been decimated or distracted by other conflicts.
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, whose name means Organization for the Liberation of the Levant, began to form at the beginning of Syria’s civil war, when jihadists formed the Al Nusra Front to fight pro-Assad forces with hundreds of insurgent and suicide attacks.
The group’s leader, Abu Mohammad al-Jolani who was a member of Al-Qaeda And ISIS, told The New York Times his primary goal was to “liberate Syria from this oppressive regime.” He has tried to gain legitimacy by providing services to residents in his stronghold of Idlib.
Publicly, American officials have been cautious about Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. But inside the U.S. government, some officials believe the group’s turn toward pragmatism is genuine, and that its leaders know they cannot realize aspirations to join or lead the Syrian government if the group is seen as a jihadist organization.
After fleeing Damascus ahead of a rebel advance, Assad and his family were confirmed last night to have arrived in Moscow and had been granted political asylum, according to Russia state media.
The rapidly developing events have shaken the region. Lebanon said it was closing its land border crossings with Syria except for one that links Beirut with Damascus. Jordan also closed a border crossing with Syria.
