To the sound of music from the audio system of his automotive, Abdallah, a resident of Damascus, took the palm-lined highway to the palace of Bashar al-Assad within the Syrian capital on Sunday morning. He reaches the doorway, turns off the music and wanders into the center of the ability of a dynasty that has dominated his nation with an iron fist for greater than 50 years.
Contained in the marble halls, Syrians wandered in denims and hoodies, admiring surreal scenes of ornate furnishings damaged and piled in corners. “I nonetheless can't imagine it,” mentioned Abdallah, who spent the evening in terror amid intense bombardment till the rebels introduced simply earlier than daybreak that that they had the entire management of the capital. marking the beginning of the fall of the Assad regime.
“Nobody has suffered as a lot because the Syrian folks,” he informed the Monetary Occasions in a telephone name and sharing movies from his journey. “The entire metropolis stood up for pleasure – everyone seems to be within the streets, shouting, capturing.”
Throughout 13 years of civil conflict, Damascus was an Assad stronghold, from the place the navy and intelligence providers maintained a brutal grip on the nation's residents. However within the early hours of Sunday, euphoria swept via the capital as residents awoke to the sudden fall of a dictator who survived greater than a decade of conflict however was toppled in a surprising offensive insurgent for 2 weeks.
Public squares had been stuffed with celebrations Sunday morning, as many, like Abdallah, rushed to buildings that had been as soon as symbols of Assaddemolishing portraits and stealing all the pieces from luxurious perfumes to board video games.
However to this unbridled pleasure was added chaos. Rebels and strange Syrians have invaded the symbols of the Assad regime. And the takeover by insurgent factions, led by the highly effective Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group, plunges the country into a new era of uncertainty amid unresolved questions on who will govern and the way.
Many individuals related to the Assad regime had been nowhere to be discovered Sunday. The prime minister was filmed being escorted out of his workplace on pink velvet steps by rebels. He was apparently to be taken to the 4 Seasons Lodge, which was owned by a regime loyalist however is now believed for use by rebels as a logo of the gorgeous overthrow of energy.
“The military has deserted, the tv has deserted, the palace, the safety providers, the state buildings,” mentioned a Damascus resident. “The troopers give up their weapons. The scenario may be very tense, they’ve opened all of the prisons.”
Abdallah tried to enter the Assad household's posh residence however was turned away by insurgent guards searching for to manage the looting. Movies shared by Damascenes with the FT and on social media confirmed strange folks wandering across the luxurious house, in disbelief on the opulence their leaders had lived in, laughing as they methodically packed all the pieces from purses from designers to ceramic plates, from the inside of the home. “Wow! An elevator contained in the house!” a woman exclaimed.
Abu Sakhr al-Karak, a present store proprietor within the southern province of Daraa, the place the Syrian revolution started in 2011, didn’t sleep all evening. When information of the regime's collapse broke earlier than dawn, he mentioned his daybreak prayers and left for Damascus together with his brothers and associates.
The previous activist, who gave up protesting when the revolution turned violent, got here to the capital each week however had not been there for 14 years. A lot time had handed that he might now not keep in mind the names of the principle streets.
“The primary moments had been simply pure happiness. All of Syria is celebrating,” he mentioned, talking from one in every of Damascus’ most well-known squares as celebratory gunshots rang out round him. “The one factor is that it was barely tempered by the state of chaos. We simply hope nobody will get damage.
Residents informed the FT that though armed insurgent forces guarded public establishments and banks and tried to manage looting, chaos nonetheless reigned. In a press release launched Sunday morning, the rebels urged residents to not shoot into the air or steal.
Al-Karak mentioned widespread looting was the one purpose for his hesitation and noticed the pinnacle of HTS Abu Mohammad al-Jolani like a very good chief. HTS was previously affiliated with al-Qaeda and is taken into account a terrorist group by america and others, though Jolani has sought to painting the Islamist group as a extra average pressure in recent times.
The autumn of the regime means 1000’s of Syrians in exile – each contained in the nation and overseas – can return residence after greater than a decade. “It’s like my soul has come again to me – we’ve been ready for this second for 50 years,” mentioned Youssef Shoghr, who arrived in Damascus from Lebanon in a convoy accompanied by fireworks and insurgent flags.
Shafiq Abu Talal, initially from Damascus however residing for years within the HTS stronghold of Idlib, deliberate to return to his metropolis instantly.
“My city was the final to be free. The emotions are indescribable,” he mentioned. He mentioned his dad and mom lived close to a detention heart within the capital that was opened early Sunday, a scene that was repeated throughout the nation as political prisoners had been launched.
“Occasions have accelerated dramatically,” Abu Talal mentioned. “The revolution lasted 13 years and the regime resulted in lower than 13 days. »
After the palace, Abdullah went to the embassy of Iran, an Assad ally which, together with Russia, has helped help the regime towards the favored rebellion.
After spending hours touring round his metropolis, Abdallah's telephone died. He stopped to load it contained in the ransacked navy safety constructing, a spot he mentioned he was by no means even allowed to move by.
He defined that he selected this location as a result of, in contrast to the remainder of the inhabitants, the regime's navy buildings benefited from an uninterrupted electrical energy provide. “For them it by no means cuts, for us it by no means comes,” he mentioned.
However Abdallah remained incredulous: “I’m at all times afraid that it’s a dream, that I’ll get up. Or it seems they're simply pretending they usually'll come again to kill us all.
Further reporting by Raya Jalabi in Beirut and Chloe Cornish in Dubai
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