Anti-government forces in Syria have announced on state television that they have freed Damascus and ousted President Bashar al-Assad. The president has reportedly fled to a Russian military base in Syria. Rebel forces began to step up their offensive on November 27. Opposition forces also moved toward Damascus from the north and the south by taking control of key cities. The Assad government quickly weakened in the face of the offensive. The conflicts in Lebanon and Ukraine have hampered efforts by the Lebanon-based Shia Muslim group Hezbollah and Russia to provide it with military support. Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi Jalali posted a video on social media on Sunday. He said the government was ready to “extend its hand to the opposition.”

(Mohammad Ghazi Jalali / Syrian Prime Minister) “We will leave this matter to any new leadership chosen by the Syrian people. We are ready to cooperate.”