Syria entered uncharted political waters on Sunday after the collapse of the 24-year rule of Bashar Al Assad under a rebel advance so swift even his allies in Moscow and Tehran failed to prevent it.
The president left the country by plane to an unknown destination hours after rebels overran the city of Homs, Arab officials said. The capture of Homs cut off the supply line from his seat of power in Damascus to the Alawite Mountains, the ancestral home of the Alawite minority that has dominated power in majority-Sunni Syria for the last six decades.
“Freedom, freedom,” shouted crowds in the main Umayyad Square in Damascus, a few blocks from Mr Assad’s home, as the fireworks lit the night sky.
The downfall of Mr Al Assad undermines years of methodical work by Russia and Iran to expand in the Middle East and weakens the US. He was a crucial link in an uneasy alliance but differed on how much Iran could use Syria as a launch pad to threaten Israel. The Russian and Iranian military presence had reportedly shrunk in Syria in the last week as the iron grip of the regime loosened.
Over the past 12 days, thousands of political prisoners in jails and secret police dungeons were freed after security forces abandoned their positions in the cities of Aleppo, Hama, Homs and finally Damascus. The high-walled compounds and security towers underpinned the iron rule of Mr Assad and before him his father Hafez Al Assad, who came to power in a 1970 military coup that deposed another Alawite officer. Posters and statues of the father and the son, symbols of the decades-long personality cult, came down.
“The minimum amount of bloodshed that has been spilt in the past several days leading to regime’s downfall tells you about the direction Syria is heading,” said Fawaz Tello, was jailed for five years for leading the pro-democracy Damascus Spring movement shortly after Mr Assad came to power in 2000.
The rebels are led by Hayat Tahrir Al Sham, an Al Qaeda offshoot with links to Turkey. Its leader Ahmad Al Shara, formerly known as Abu Muhammad Al Julani, has instructed the rebels to keep the civil department of the government under the supervision of the last prime minister who served under Assad. Mr Al Shara recently abandoned his nom de guerre, to project an image of moderation, although his organisation is listed as terrorist the US and Europe.
“The message is to maintain continuity of state functions and avoid violence,” Mr Tello said from Berlin, adding that Mr Shara is “currently the leader of the revolution” but that he will become a civilian figure.
“He can run for elections in the new, democratic Syria,” Mr Tello said, adding that core supporters of Mr Assad, who are mainly Alawites, can join in “building the new Syria if they don’t have blood on their hands".
“All what they need to do is to say sorry,” Mr Tello said.
Syria was the last country whose population arose in the wave of Arab uprisings a decade ago. The regime used deadly force to suppress the protest movement that began in March 2011, killing thousands of civilians and prompting a violent backlash by members of the Sunni majority. By the end of it, Syria was in civil war. The country fragmented into Russian, Iranian, US and Turkish zones of control, manned by the proxies of each country.
Ahmad Tumeh, who fled to Turkey to escape persecution after leading the pro-democracy movement in eastern Syria in 2011, said that the rebels “have learnt the lesson” from the disintegration of some states after the Arab uprisings.
“They will avoid chaos. Syria is on its way of becoming a pluralistic, tolerant state,” he said. “What happened has already proved that the Syrian people are capable of miracles."
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Dolittle
Director: Stephen Gaghan
Stars: Robert Downey Jr, Michael Sheen
One-and-a-half out of five stars
MATCH INFO
What: 2006 World Cup quarter-final
When: July 1
Where: Gelsenkirchen Stadium, Gelsenkirchen, Germany
Result:
England 0 Portugal 0
(Portugal win 3-1 on penalties)
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
- If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
- By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
- Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
- Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Power: 110 horsepower
Torque: 147Nm
Price: From Dh59,700
On sale: now
Ukraine
Capital: Kiev
Population: 44.13 million
Armed conflict in Donbass
Russia-backed fighters control territory
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
more from Janine di Giovanni
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
HOW DO SIM CARD SCAMS WORK?
Sim swap frauds are a form of identity theft.
They involve criminals conning mobile phone operators into issuing them with replacement Sim cards, often by claiming their phone has been lost or stolen
They use the victim's personal details - obtained through criminal methods - to convince such companies of their identity.
The criminal can then access any online service that requires security codes to be sent to a user's mobile phone, such as banking services.
MATCH INFO
Champions League quarter-final, first leg
Ajax v Juventus, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Match on BeIN Sports
Notable Yas events in 2017/18
October 13-14 KartZone (complimentary trials)
December 14-16 The Gulf 12 Hours Endurance race
March 5 Yas Marina Circuit Karting Enduro event
March 8-9 UAE Rotax Max Challenge
