Syria’s capital woke up on Sunday to chanting, cheering and gunfire in celebration of the fall of President Bashar al-Assad, after rebels said they entered the city and toppled the long-time ruler.
“I can’t believe I’m living this moment,” tearful Damascus resident Amer Batha told journalists by phone from the capital’s Ummayad Square, where witnesses said dozens of people had gathered to celebrate.
“We’ve been waiting a long time for this day,” said Batha, as Islamist-led rebels and a war monitor declared the end of decades of Assad family rule amid 13 years of grinding civil war.
“We are starting a new history for Syria,” Batha added.
At the dawn call to prayer, some mosques were broadcasting religious chants usually reserved for festive occasions, while also urging residents to stay home with the city engulfed in uncertainty just hours into the rebels’ takeover.
Rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and allied factions have pressed a lightning offensive since November 27, sweeping swathes of the country from government control, including major cities Aleppo, Hama and Homs, and entering the capital Damascus early on Sunday.
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