By Christina Goldbaum and Vivian Yee
The rebels who ended the Assad family’s brutal rule in Syria began asserting control over the capital Monday, announcing that a new government would begin work immediately as its fighters took up positions outside public buildings and directed traffic in a show of their newly claimed authority.
Major questions remained unanswered, including who would lead the new rebel government, as millions of Syrians and the wider world struggled to process the stunning end to the Assad family’s decades-long reign. Euphoria around the ouster of President Bashar Assad over the weekend mixed with uncertainty about the future of the country and the intentions of the rebels who now hold the capital, Damascus.
The rebels, led by an Islamist leader with the nom de guerre of Abu Mohammed al-Golani, face the complex task of extending their control over a country with deep ethnic, sectarian and religious divisions. Their military leadership said in a statement on Telegram that rebel forces were “about to finish controlling the capital and preserving public property,” and that a new government would begin work “immediately” after being formed. It did not specify who would lead the new government.
New York Times reporters entering Syria on Monday via Lebanon saw abandoned Syrian military tanks, empty checkpoints and ripped-up posters of Assad littering the main highway to the capital, Damascus.
Syrians who had fled a 13-year civil war clogged the roads from Turkey and Lebanon to return home, as did people who had been displaced within the country.
But some who had supported the Assad government fear they could face retribution. And on Monday, there were early signs of the lawlessness — broken windows of cars and shops — that many fear could spiral and grip the country.
Here’s what to know:
— Prisons: Hundreds of Syrians were rushing on Monday to Sednaya Prison, a complex near Damascus that was notorious for torture and executions, in the hopes of finding missing loved ones.
— Israel: Israeli forces entered Syrian territory over the weekend, taking up what officials described as temporary defensive positions. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar also said Israel had struck Syrian chemical weapons and missile sites in an effort to keep extremists from seizing them. While many in Israel are concerned about who will succeed Assad, his fall is also seen as the crowning consequence of a yearlong Israeli campaign against Iran and its interests.
— Assad in Russia: Moscow will not disclose Assad’s location in Russia, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Russian news agencies Monday. He added that President Vladimir Putin had made the decision to offer exile to Assad and his family, but there were no immediate plans for the two men to meet.
— Arab pivot: Arab nations had been working hard to bring Assad back into the fold, assuming he was there to stay. They were badly mistaken, and now find themselves thinking through the implications of a post-Assad world in the Middle East, where Iran’s influence is crumbling and the power of Turkey and Israel has been enhanced.
— Turkey: Turkey backed the rebel group that toppled the Assad regime. Its military also fired on U.S.-backed Kurdish forces in northern Syria over the weekend. That illustrates how the interests of Turkey and the U.S. diverge over support for the Kurds, who have been instrumental U.S. partners in fighting the Islamic State group.
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