Bashar al-Assad left Syria: How the autocrat schemed his departure to Russia
The Syrian strongman escaped the nation, leaving behind his relatives: Bashar al-Assad endeavored to persuade his staff to continue the fight till the bitter end, even though he himself was already organizing a flight to Russia.
Sources knowledgeable about the matter informed Reuters concerning the ex-Syrian president's closing days in power. According to them, even the military high command had faith in a miraculous deliverance.
“After his journey to Moscow, he mentioned to his officers and companions that military backing would be supplied. He deceived them. The response he obtained from Moscow was unfavorable,” stated Al-Bahra, a Syrian opposition figure.
Related accounts are heard not solely from the adversaries of the former tyrant, but also from individuals who were his allies just recently.
“During our final discussion, I communicated to him how critical the circumstance was and that there existed a massive displacement [of individuals] from Homs to Latakia. That there was alarm and dread in the streets. He answered, 'We'll observe tomorrow.' 'Tomorrow, tomorrow'—that was the ultimate thing he expressed to me,” stated Jalali, the one-time prime minister.
The meeting transpired merely hours prior to the Syrian leader's departure. He cautiously concealed his motives: on that day, Bashar al-Assad advised his office manager he was going home and even requested his aide to draft a speech for him. He himself proceeded directly to the airport. The autocrat's family members were also uninformed.
Assad didn't even tell his younger sibling, Maher, chief of the elite 4th Armored Division, about his escape strategy. Maher traveled via helicopter to Iraq and thereafter to Russia. Assad's maternal cousins, Ehab and Eyad Makhlouf, were likewise abandoned when Damascus fell to rebel control. As per sources, the pair attempted to escape via car to Lebanon, but were ambushed by rebels en route, who shot and killed Ehab and injured Eyad.
Reuters.
In the meantime, advocates of the new administration have already captured Bashar al-Assad's presidential residence. Western journalists are presently being provided excursions there. Based on their account, merely remnants of its previous magnificence persist.
“Adjacent to the conference room is an office with an engraved desk constructed from precious wood. They affirm it was valued at $100,000, yet it seems it was excessively challenging to recover. In the bedroom, there's a mahogany bed frame; even the mattress is absent. The bathroom possesses costly fittings, but the faucets are extracted, and a regime flag, trampled by individuals, rests on the floor,” observes Prengel, a journalist.
Assad is presently located in Russia. His spouse and children departed Syria even earlier. The Russian Foreign Ministry articulated that it granted refuge to the former president and his family “based on humanitarian grounds.”
