Syria: “Damascus has fallen militarily”

Gunfire is reported from several quarters in the Syrian capital, Damascus.

The rebels say they have begun to enter the capital and have taken the notorious Sednaya prison.

At the same time, information comes that the dictator has fled by plane and that his soldiers are taking off their uniforms.

The Syrian opposition forces, made up of several different groups, have taken the world by surprise in the past week with their rapid advance.

During Saturday, they are reported to have rapidly captured several important cities and to have surrounded Damascus.

On the night of Saturday, information came from several people that the rebels had entered the capital.

A resident initially told CNN that fighting is taking place in the northern suburb of Barzeh:

– I saw rebel soldiers heading towards the inner streets of Barzeh and I can hear loud sounds of fighting. The electricity is off and the internet is very weak. People stay in their homes.

“The Arm Retreats”

At the same time said the exiled Syrian and opposition-backed television channel Syria TV that “shooting is heard in the heart of the capital”.

A reporter at the London-based Global Arab Network signed X that shots are heard near two squares inside Damascus and that government forces are withdrawing.

In its telecast, CNN also published a video that purports to show Syrian army vehicles retreating into Iraq.

– Militarily, Damascus has fallen, says a source with insight into the rebels’ advance to the television channel.

According to The Guardian videos of Syrian army soldiers taking off their uniforms in the streets are spreading.

In the early hours of Saturday morning, Reuters news agency stated that Bashar al-Assad has left Damascus. Two high-ranking army officers with insight into the development of events are listed as the source. They said the dictator boarded a plane with an unknown destination.

The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) also states that al-Assad has fled.

“Has taken the prison”

Initially during the night the rebels stated on Telegram that their forces “have begun to enter Damascus” and that they have taken the infamous Sednaya prison, the very symbol of al-Assad’s regime.

In social media images are spread which is said to show how prisoners were set free on the street.

The Syrian regime’s security forces are said to have withdrawn from Damascus International Airport after a private plane took off from there, writes TT with reference to SOHR.

In the early hours of Saturday morning, the rebels announced that they will take over state media.

“The military command is on its way to take control of the radio and television house to declare victory over Assad,” they wrote in a statement according to CNN.

At the same time, on Telegram, the account Almharar, a news agency linked to the rebels, stated that the victory has been won.

“The Syrian people have overthrown Bashar al-Assad,” they write.

On their official account, the rebels wrote:

“We declare the city of Damascus free from the tyrant Bashar al-Assad”.