Beirut, 08 December, (IANS). The claim that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has left the country is being made in many media reports quoting rebel groups. Rebel groups also claim to have captured the capital, Damascus. After all, who is President Assad and why are the rebel groups fighting against him?
Bashar al-Assad, 59, took power in 2000 after the death of his father Hafez al-Assad. His father had been ruling the country since 1971.
Born in Damascus, al-Assad graduated from medical school in the capital, according to media reports. He was studying in London to specialize in ophthalmology when he had to return to Syria after the death of his brother.
Elder brother Bassel al-Assad was scheduled to succeed their father as leader of the country, but he died in a car accident, leaving Bashar as heir apparent.
2011 was the most important year of his rule when thousands of Syrian citizens took to the streets demanding democracy, but they faced heavy government repression. However, various armed rebel groups formed in opposition to the government and by mid-2012, the rebellion escalated into a full-scale civil war.
Assad has been accused of human rights violations, including the use of chemical weapons in Syria during the war, repression of Kurds and forced disappearances.
Assad successfully fought rebel groups for years with the help of Russia, Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah. But the rebel groups that suddenly became active recently created a lot of trouble for the Syrian President because Assad’s three allies – Russia, Hezbollah and Iran and Israel – were embroiled in their own conflicts.
According to media reports, Assad’s army was destroyed by years of war and many soldiers did not even want to fight on his side.
The fall of Assad’s regime is a major blow to Russia and Iran, which have lost an important ally in the region.
–IANS
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