Monday, 9 December
Thousands of Syrians celebrate the fall of dictator Assad in Berlin
People gathered throughout Neukölln and Kreuzberg over the weekend to celebrate the fall of dictator Bashar al-Assad. According to police, 5,000 demonstrators gathered on Oranienplatz in Kreuzberg early on Sunday afternoon. There were also countless cars driving around through surrounding streets celebrating the victory.
Spontaneous gatherings and car convoys also took place on Moritzplatz and Sonnenallee during the day. People were waving the flags of Syria and the opponents of the regime. The crowd moved on towards Oberbaumbrücke with hundreds of police officers managing the crowds.
Islamists from the group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) reported the capture of the Syrian capital Damascus. Former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad had reportedly fled on a military plane, with the Russian Foreign Ministry, a supporter of al-Assad, announcing in the morning that he had left the country and resigned. Many reports yesterday evening announced that he and his family were “in asylum” in Russia. The dictator had ruled Syria for almost 25 years, following in the footsteps of his father.
Supported by Iran and Russia, Assad waged war against rebel forces since 2011, including several radical jihadist groups – but also against the civilian population. His army used barrel bombs and poison gas, among other things, and more than 500, 000 people were killed during his rule. As a result, millions of Syrians fled abroad.
The capture of Damascus was preceded by a rapid advance by the Islamist rebels, who had gained control of several major Syrian cities within a few days. Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi Al-Jalali pledged to support an orderly transfer of power.
Germany’s Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) described the fall of the regime on Sunday as the “first great sigh of relief”, but also warned against a renewed escalation. “The country must not now fall into the hands of other radicals – no matter what guise they take,” she said in a statement.
