France has called on rebel leaders in Syria to ensure “unity” in the country following the fall of President Bashar al-Assad, ending five decades of Baath party rule, reports RFI.
Islamist-led rebels announced "the liberation of the city of Damascus and the fall of the tyrant Bashar al-Assad" on state television on Sunday, after advancing on the capital in the early hours of the morning.
Rebel commander Abu Mohammed al-Golani said in a statement there was no room for turning back and the group was determined to continue the path they started in 2011 during the Arab Spring – a movement against authoritarian rule that began in Tunisia and spread across much of the Arab world.
"The future is ours," the statement said.
President Bashar al-Assad has reportedly fled the country. Russia, a Syria ally, claims he left after giving instructions to transfer power "peacefully". His whereabouts remain unknown for the moment.
"On this historic day for Syria and the Syrian people, France welcomes the fall of Bachar al-Assad's regime after more than 13 years of very violent repression against its own people," the French Foreign Ministry said in a statement Sunday.
"Now is the time for unity in Syria," it read, calling for an end to fighting and a peaceful political transition in the country.
President Emmanuel Macron said he welcomed the fall of Bashar al-Assad's "barbaric" state.