Bashar al-Assad along with his family arrives in Moscow

Moscow: Former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his family have arrived in Moscow after escaping from the Middle East country, and they have received asylum in Russia, the media reported, citing top officials.

A leading Russian media outlet citing a Kremlin source said that Assad and his family have been granted asylum by Russia for humanitarian reasons.

Russia, an ally of Syria, has stressed the necessity to restart negotiations on the settlement of the situation in the Middle East nation under the ‘overall guidance’ of the United Nations.

Assad stepped down as the president of Syria and left the country, hours after rebel forces took control of the capital Damascus.

The BBC reported that early on Sunday morning, after their fighters entered the city without resistance, the Islamist militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and its allies declared that “the tyrant Bashar al-Assad has fled”.

Assad has not been seen in pictures since he met the Iranian Foreign Minister in Damascus a week ago. He had then vowed to “crush” the rebels seizing territory at a brisk pace.

In a stunning turn of events on Sunday, opposition forces in Syria seized control of the capital, Damascus, following a rapid offensive that saw major Syrian cities falling like dominos within days.

After taking over, opposition fighters appeared on state television channels to announce what they described as the fall of Damascus and the end of President Bashar al-Assad’s rule.

A man in military fatigues, flanked by armed fighters, read a statement on air, calling it ‘Statement No. 1.’ He claimed that rebel units had captured Damascus.

Opposition activists said the rebel fighters entered the Syrian capital at dawn Sunday, according to the Britain-based war monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Xinhua news agency reported.

The monitor said hundreds of government soldiers were ordered to withdraw from Damascus International Airport and were seen removing their military uniforms and donning civilian clothing.

Multiple media outlets have reported that al-Assad has left the country, citing rebel forces.

Reporters of Xinhua news agency in Damascus witnessed intense gunshots reverberating through the streets with heavy traffic caused by cars departing the capital.

Civilians took to the streets, waving the ‘revolution flag,’ an older flag used in Syria before the rule of Hafez al-Assad, the late father of Bashar al-Assad.

Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi Al-Jallali announced his readiness to cooperate with any leadership chosen by the Syrian people.

Opposition military leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa, also known as Abu Mohammad Al-Julani, declared Al-Jallali would oversee public institutions until an official transfer of authority is completed.

IANS