Bashar al-Assad's First Statement After Fleeing Syria: Russia Evacuated Me

The ousted Syrian president stated in his first statement after leaving his country and the collapse of his regime that he moved from Damascus to the Hmeimim base (under Russian control in western Syria) to continue his work from there. However, with the fall of the last positions of the army, Moscow ordered the base commander to immediately go to Moscow on the evening of December 8. In this statement, published on Monday, December 26, via the 'Telegram channel of the Syrian presidency', Bashar al-Assad claimed that he remained in Syria until the last moments and monitored the situation in his country, asserting that he did not leave Syria until the evening of December 18 but exited following Moscow's order to the Hmeimim base command. He referred to the rulers who have taken control of Damascus and are now managing large parts of Syria as 'terrorists' and wrote that 'his country is under the control of saboteurs.' The rebels opposing Bashar al-Assad began their movement from Idlib, in northwestern Syria, which had been under their control for about a decade, on December 8 and entered Damascus after capturing Aleppo, Hama, and Homs within 11 days. Ahmad al-Shara, known as Abu Muhammad al-Julani, the commander of 'Hayat Tahrir al-Sham', has taken over the administration after Bashar al-Assad's exit, handing over the government appointed by Assad to a transitional government led by Muhammad al-Bashir. Russia officially announced that with the agreement of Vladimir Putin, it granted asylum to Bashar al-Assad and his wife and children. Bashar al-Assad claimed in his statement that his exit from Syria was not planned and that he 'never thought of resignation or seeking asylum at any point during the events.' He also claimed that no individual or party offered him the option to leave the country. He described himself as 'the same person' who has been 'trying to save his nation' since the beginning of the Syrian civil war and that he had rejected numerous tempting offers that would endanger himself or serve only personal interests. Bashar al-Assad stated that he saw the only practical solution as 'fighting against terrorist attacks' and was engaged in that. Reports from Reuters in the days following Bashar al-Assad's departure from Damascus indicated that he had a meeting with security and military commanders in the Ministry of Defense building in Damascus on December 17, telling them that Russian reinforcements were on the way and that only the Syrian army should resist until the Russians arrived. That Saturday evening, opposition forces had crossed from Homs and reached the gates of Damascus. According to Reuters' investigation, after the Ministry of Defense meeting, Bashar al-Assad told his chief of staff that he was going home and summoned his senior media advisor, Bouthaina Shaaban, to his residence to write a speech for him. However, instead of going home, he flew from Damascus to the Russian airbase in Latakia, and when Ms. Shaaban arrived at the presidential palace, Bashar al-Assad had already left. Reuters added that Maher al-Assad, Bashar al-Assad's brother and a senior commander in his army, was unaware of his brother's escape but immediately flew by helicopter to Iraq that evening and from there fled to Russia. It is unclear whether Vladimir Putin has granted asylum to Maher al-Assad as well. In his statement, Bashar al-Assad wrote that he saw Syrian army forces abandoning their positions while flying from Damascus to Latakia. He added that the Hmeimim base was 'heavily attacked by drones' upon his arrival, and the Russians decided to transfer him to Moscow by plane after receiving orders from Moscow. While Bashar al-Assad described his exit from Syria as 'unexpected', the Financial Times reported on December 25 that he had transferred over $250 million in cash, dollars, and euros to Russia over the past two years for various reasons. Bashar al-Assad went to Moscow one day after the rebels moved from Idlib towards Aleppo and met with Vladimir Putin. Multiple reports indicated that he left his wife Asma and three children in Russia during that trip. Bashar al-Assad stated in his statement that he had not given any orders to the army to retreat from the battle lines (with the rebels) but observed that his troops had abandoned their positions and that 'the last positions of the army had fallen.' The ousted president claimed that 'with the fall of the country and its falling into the hands of terrorism', the existence of a position as president is meaningless. Bashar al-Assad wrote that he is someone who 'has never abandoned the resistance of Palestine and Lebanon and has not betrayed the allies who stood by him.' Without mentioning his plans for the future, he wrote that he 'cannot abandon his people or betray the army and nation to which he belongs.' In conclusion, Bashar al-Assad expressed hope that 'Syria will once again be free and independent.' The people of Syria celebrated the collapse of Bashar al-Assad's regime in the streets of the country, and last Friday, on the first Friday after the events, hundreds of thousands gathered in mosques and then in the streets in response to Ahmad al-Shara's call to welcome the developments. Satellite images indicate that Russia is transferring its military equipment out of Syria. Ahmad al-Shara, known as Abu Muhammad al-Julani, the leader of the rebels, and Muhammad al-Bashir, the appointed prime minister of the transitional period, have yet to respond to Bashar al-Assad's statement. Mr. Julani has emphasized in several recent media interviews the need for the unity of the people and focusing on rebuilding his country. Apart from Turkey, which effectively supported the ruling rebels in Idlib and their movement towards Damascus, many leaders of Western countries have described Bashar al-Assad's flight as a new era for Syria and cautiously welcomed it. Some Western governments have suggested that monitoring the situation in Syria may lead to Ahmad al-Shara being removed from the terrorist blacklist. The U.S. Secretary of State also confirmed on Sunday, December 25, that Washington has made direct contact with the new rulers of Damascus. Geir Pedersen, the UN special envoy for Syria, who visited Damascus on December 25 to meet with Ahmad al-Shara, also called on the international community to lift the sanctions imposed during Bashar al-Assad's era so that Syria can rise from the ruins of years of civil war.