Bashar al-Assad

Access to Syria 'Crime Scene' a 'Game-Changer': UN Investigator

UN investigators who for years have been gathering evidence of horrific crimes committed in Syria hope Bashar al-Assad's downfall will finally mean they can access "the crime scene" and "massive evidence". "There is a sea change," said Robert Petit, a Canadian prosecutor and legal scholar who heads the United Nations investigative body known as ...

The Lebanese Killed by the Assad Regime for Their Sovereigntist Beliefs

Kamal Joumblatt On March 16, 1977, the Druze leader and founder of the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP), Kamal Joumblatt, was shot dead at the age of 60 in his car near the village of Baakline, in the Shouf mountains. The main suspects are members of the Baath Party and the Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP). Salim Lawzi A well-known ...

Israel Helped to Topple Assad, But It Wasn't Planned, Analysts Say

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday claimed the fall of Bashar al-Assad in Syria as a direct outcome of Israel's actions in the region, something analysts in Israel said was only partially true. Speaking while under growing domestic pressure over the fate of Israeli hostages in Gaza and a corruption trial, Netanyahu said Assad's ...

Biden Calls For Assad To Be 'Held Accountable'

US President Joe Biden on Sunday said deposed Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad should be "held accountable" but called the nation's political upheaval a "historic opportunity" for Syrians to rebuild their country. In the first full US reaction to Assad's overthrow by an Islamist-led coalition of rebel factions, Biden ...

Assad and Family Take Refuge in Moscow After Fleeing Damascus

Syria's ousted president Bashar al-Assad and his family are in Moscow, a Kremlin source told Russian news agencies, hours after he fled the country as Islamist-led rebels entered Damascus. The announcement comes as Russia, a key Assad ally, called for an emergency meeting of the UN security council on the fast-changing situation on the ground in ...

Across Europe, Syrians Hold Joyful Rallies to Celebrate Fall of Assad

Thousands of jubilant Syrians rallied in Berlin and cities across Europe on Sunday, waving flags and singing with joy to celebrate the fall of President Bashar al-Assad. "Finally we are free!" exclaimed a smiling Bassam Al-Hamada, 39, among 5,000 people at an exuberant rally in the capital of Germany, the country home to the largest ...

Syrians Enter Bashar al-Assad's Looted Damascus Home

Dozens of Syrians explored President Bashar al-Assad's luxurious Damascus home after it was looted on Sunday, an AFP correspondent said, following the fall of the capital to rebel forces. Women, children and men could be seen touring the home and its large garden, with the rooms completely empty, save some furniture and a portrait of Assad ...

Syria's Bashar al-Assad's Quarter Century in Power

AFP looks back at almost a quarter-century of rule by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad since he was propelled to power following the death of his father Hafez in 2000. 2000: takes over from father On July 17, 2000, Assad becomes Syria's new head of state, after the death of his father, aged 69, who ruled Syria with an iron grip for 30 years. He ...

Bashar al-Assad: From Tyranny to Collapse

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad oversaw a merciless crackdown on a pro-democracy revolt that morphed into one of the bloodiest wars of the century. On Sunday, as rebels entered the capital, a Syrian war monitor said he had left the country, in what could spell the end not just of his 24-year rule but the downfall of his clan's five-decade ...

Syria Rebels Say They Control Homs

Islamist-led rebels announced Sunday they had captured the strategic city of Homs, on the way towards Damascus where Syria's embattled government said it was setting up an impenetrable security cordon. The defence ministry earlier denied rebels had entered Homs, describing the situation there as "safe and stable". But the leader of ...