🕷️ Crawler Inspector

URL Lookup

Direct Parameter Lookup

Raw Queries and Responses

1. Shard Calculation

Query:

Response:

Calculated Shard: 149 (from laksa060)

2. Crawled Status Check

Query:

curl -X POST \
  'http://laksa149.int.ahrefs:8124/' \
  -H 'Content-Type: text/plain' \
  -H 'X-ClickHouse-Database: crawler3' \
  -H 'Authorization: Basic YXBpOg==' \
  -d 'SELECT getAhrefsURLFromUnparsed(src_unparsed) AS found_url, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(download_stamp), 0) AS crawl_time, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(props_url_first_seen), 0) AS first_indexed_time, download_http_code AS http_code, src_unparsed AS src_unparsed, src_root_hash AS src_root_hash, history_drop_reason AS history_drop_reason, meta_title AS meta_title, meta_descriptions AS meta_descriptions, attrs_boilerpipe_text AS attrs_boilerpipe_text, attrs_markdown AS attrs_markdown, attrs_readable_markdown AS attrs_readable_markdown, meta_canonical AS meta_canonical, ml_categories_json AS ml_categories_json, ml_types_json AS ml_types_json, ml_intent_types_json AS ml_intent_types_json, meta_language AS meta_language, attrs_author AS attrs_author, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(attrs_publish_time), 0) AS attrs_publish_time, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(attrs_original_publish_time), 0) AS attrs_original_publish_time, ifNull(attrs_is_republished, 0) AS attrs_is_republished, ifNull(attrs_nr_words, 0) AS attrs_nr_words, ifNull(attrs_boilerpipe_nr_words, 0) AS attrs_boilerpipe_nr_words, ifNull(body_ext_links_number, 0) AS body_ext_links_number, ifNull(body_int_links_number, 0) AS body_int_links_number, ifNull(meta_nofollow, 0) AS meta_nofollow, ifNull(meta_noarchive, 0) AS meta_noarchive, ifNull(props_was_rendered, 0) AS props_was_rendered, ifNull(src_redirect, \'\') AS src_redirect, ifNull(download_time_msec, 0) AS download_time_msec, ifNull(download_ttfb_msec, 0) AS download_ttfb_msec, ifNull(download_size, 0) AS download_size FROM crawler3.page_info_local FINAL PREWHERE (src_root_hash, src_unparsed) IN ((getAhrefsRootHashFromUnparsed(getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://apnews.com/article/syria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d\')), getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://apnews.com/article/syria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d\'))) FORMAT JSONEachRow'

Response:

{"found_url":"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d","crawl_time":1776809737,"first_indexed_time":1733635684,"http_code":200,"src_unparsed":"com,apnews!\/article\/syria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d s443","src_root_hash":"13170802201813479149","history_drop_reason":null,"meta_title":"Fall of Syria's President puts an end to the Assad family’s 54 years of rule | AP News","meta_descriptions":["Assad came to power in 2000 by a twist of fate. His father had been cultivating Bashar’s oldest brother, Basil, as his successor, but in 1994, Basil was killed in a car crash in Damascus"],"attrs_boilerpipe_text":"BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian President Bashar Assad fled the country on Sunday, bringing to a dramatic close his nearly 14-year struggle to hold onto control as his country fragmented in a brutal civil war that became a proxy battlefield for regional and international powers.\nThe exit of the 59-year-old Assad stood in stark contrast to his first months as Syria’s unlikely president in 2000, when many hoped he would be a young reformer after three decades of his father’s iron grip. At age 34, the Western-educated ophthalmologist appeared as a geeky tech-savvy fan of computers with a gentle demeanor.\nSyrian President Bashar Assad reviews the presidential guard during the welcoming ceremony in Athens, Dec. 15, 2003. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris, File)\nSyrian President Bashar Assad reviews the presidential guard during the welcoming ceremony in Athens, Dec. 15, 2003. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris, File)\nBut when faced with protests of his rule that erupted in March 2011, Assad turned to the brutal tactics of his father to crush dissent. As the uprising hemorrhaged into an outright civil war, he unleashed his military to blast opposition-held cities, with support from allies Iran and Russia.\nInternational rights groups and prosecutors alleged widespread use of torture and extrajudicial killings in Syria’s government-run detention centers. The war has killed nearly half a million people and displaced half of the country’s prewar population of 23 million.\nThe conflict appeared to be frozen in recent years, with Assad’s government regaining control of most of Syria’s territory while the northwest remained under the control of opposition groups and the northeast under Kurdish control.\nWhat to know\nHow it happened:\nTwo\nseismic weeks\nthat toppled Syria’s government.\nEnd of a decades-long dynasty:\nThe\nfall of Bashar Assad after nearly 14 years of war in Syria\nputs an end to the Assad family’s 54 years of rule.\nWho leads the opposition:\nAbu Mohammed al-Golani\n, a former al-Qaida commander who cut ties with the group years ago and says he embraces pluralism, leads the biggest rebel faction and is poised to chart the country’s future direction.\nTrump’s reaction:\nPresident-elect Donald Trump said that\nthe U.S. military should stay out\nof the fast-escalating conflict in Syria.\nAlthough Damascus remained under crippling Western sanctions, neighboring countries had begun to resign themselves to Assad’s continued hold on power. The\nArab League\nreinstated Syria’s membership last year, and Saudi Arabia in May\nannounced\nthe appointment of its first ambassador since severing ties with Damascus 12 years ago.\nHowever, the geopolitical tide turned quickly when opposition groups in northwest Syria in late November launched a\nsurprise offensive.\nGovernment forces quickly collapsed while Assad’s allies, preoccupied by other conflicts — Russia’s war in Ukraine and the yearlong wars between Israel and the Iran-backed militant groups Hezbollah and Hamas — appeared reluctant to forcefully intervene.\nSyrian President Bashar Assad, left, gestures while speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, Jan. 7, 2020. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)\nIn this photo released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, speaks with Syrian President Bashar Assad in a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 30, 2024. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File)\nAn end to decades of family rule\nAssad came to power in 2000 by a twist of fate. His father had been cultivating Bashar’s oldest brother, Basil, as his successor, but in 1994, Basil was killed in a car crash in Damascus. Bashar was brought home from his ophthalmology practice in London, put through military training and elevated to the rank of colonel to establish his credentials so he could one day rule.\nWhen Hafez Assad died in 2000, parliament quickly lowered the presidential age requirement from 40 to 34. Bashar’s elevation was sealed by a nationwide referendum, in which he was the only candidate.\nHafez, a lifelong military man, ruled the country for nearly 30 years during which he set up a Soviet-style centralized economy and kept such a stifling hand over dissent that Syrians feared even to joke about politics to their friends.\nHe pursued a secular ideology that sought to bury sectarian differences under Arab nationalism and the image of heroic resistance to Israel. He formed an alliance with the Shiite clerical leadership in Iran, sealed Syrian domination over Lebanon and set up a network of Palestinian and Lebanese militant groups.\nPresident-elect Lt. Gen. Bashar al Assad, right, attends military training games with Ali Aslan, Chief of Staff of the Syrian army, July 12, 2000, in Syria. (SANA via AP, File)\nPresident-elect Lt. Gen. Bashar al Assad, right, attends military training games with Ali Aslan, Chief of Staff of the Syrian army, July 12, 2000, in Syria. (SANA via AP, File)\nBashar initially seemed completely unlike his strongman father.\nTall and lanky with a slight lisp, he had a quiet, gentle demeanor. His only official position before becoming president was head of the Syrian Computer Society. His wife,\nAsma al-Akhras\n, whom he married several months after taking office, was attractive, stylish and British-born.\nThe young couple, who eventually had three children, seemed to shun trappings of power. They lived in an apartment in the upscale Abu Rummaneh district of Damascus, as opposed to a palatial mansion like other Arab leaders.\n2 MIN READ\n2 MIN READ\n3 MIN READ\nInitially upon coming to office, Assad freed political prisoners and allowed more open discourse. In the “Damascus Spring,” salons for intellectuals emerged where Syrians could discuss art, culture and politics to a degree impossible under his father.\nBut after 1,000 intellectuals signed a public petition calling for multiparty democracy and greater freedoms in 2001, and others tried to form a political party, the salons were snuffed out by the feared secret police, who jailed dozens of activists.\nTested by the Arab Spring, Assad relied on old alliances to stay in power\nInstead of a political opening, Assad turned to economic reforms. He slowly lifted economic restrictions, let in foreign banks, threw the doors open to imports and empowered the private sector. Damascus and other cities long mired in drabness saw a flourishing of shopping malls, new restaurants and consumer goods. Tourism swelled.\nAbroad, he stuck to the line his father had set, based on the alliance with Iran and a policy of insisting on a full return of the Israel-annexed Golan Heights, although in practice Assad never militarily confronted Israel.\nIn 2005, he suffered a heavy blow with the loss of Syria’s decades-old control over neighboring Lebanon after the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. With many Lebanese accusing Damascus of being behind the slaying, Syria was forced to withdraw its troops from the country and a pro-American government came to power.\nBashar Assad, second right, is seen during the closing session of the ruling Baath party congress in Damascus, Syria, June 20, 2000. (SANA via AP, File)\nLebanese President Emile Lahoud, left, and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad sign documents during a meeting in Damascus, Syria, March 7, 2005. (AP Photo, File)\nAt the same time, the Arab world split into two camps — one of U.S.-allied, Sunni-led countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt, the other of Syria and Shiite-led Iran with their ties to Hezbollah and Palestinian militants.\nThroughout, Assad relied largely on the same power base at home as his father: his Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam comprising around 10% of the population. Many of the positions in his government went to younger generations of the same families that had worked for his father. Drawn in as well were members of the new middle class created by his reforms, including prominent Sunni merchant families.\nAssad also turned to his own family. His younger brother Maher headed the elite Presidential Guard and would lead the crackdown against the uprising. Their sister Bushra was a strong voice in his inner circle, along with her husband, Deputy Defense Minister Assef Shawkat, until he was killed in a 2012 bombing. Bashar’s cousin, Rami Makhlouf, became the country’s biggest businessman, heading a financial empire before the two had a falling-out that led to Makhlouf being\npushed aside.\nAssad also increasingly entrusted key roles to his wife, Asma, before she announced in May that she was undergoing\ntreatment for leukemia\nand stepped out of the limelight.\nWhen 2011 protests erupted in Tunisia and Egypt, eventually toppling their rulers, Assad dismissed the possibility of the same occurring in Syria, insisting his regime was more in tune with its people. After the Arab Spring wave reached Syria, his security forces staged a brutal crackdown while Assad consistently denied he faced a popular revolt. He instead blamed “foreign-backed terrorists” trying to destabilize his regime.\nHis rhetoric struck a chord with many in Syria’s minority groups — including Christians, Druze and Shiites — as well as some Sunnis who feared the prospect of rule by Sunni extremists even more than they disliked Assad’s authoritarian rule.\nAs the uprising spiraled into a civil war, millions of Syrians fled to Jordan, Turkey, Iraq and Lebanon and on to Europe.\nIronically, on Feb. 26, 2011, two days after the fall of Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak to protesters and just days before the wave of Arab Spring protests swept into his country, Assad emailed a joke he had seen mocking the Egyptian leader’s stubborn refusal to step down.","attrs_markdown":"[Enable accessibility](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d)\n\n**0**\n\n[![AP Logo](https:\/\/assets.apnews.com\/19\/66\/bc546486408c8595f01753a9fbeb\/ap-logo-176-by-208.svg)](https:\/\/apnews.com\/)\n\nMenu\n\n- [World](https:\/\/apnews.com\/world-news)\n  \n  SECTIONS\n  \n  [Iran war](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/iran) [Russia-Ukraine war](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/russia-ukraine) [Español](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/noticias) [China](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/china) [Asia Pacific](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/asia-pacific) [Latin America](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/latin-america) [Europe](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/europe) [Africa](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/africa)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - 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Here are some tips to navigate the changes](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/remote-work-return-to-office-mandate-commute-7ab9bb7e9b658f430167f2a613b49008)\n  - [Screen fatigue is real. Experts share tips to find relief](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/computer-screens-eye-health-e0c99719204526ed5f08423f1b15f557)\n- [Newsletters](https:\/\/apnews.com\/newsletters)\n- [Photography](https:\/\/apnews.com\/photography)\n  \n  SECTIONS\n  \n  [2025 YEAR END PHOTOS](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/2025-year-end-photos) [Photo Essays](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/photo-essays)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [Working unseen to frame risk and ritual in a conflict-zone funeral](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/funeral-gunfire-conflict-zone-extraordinary-photo)\n  - [How a remote camera captured the Artemis II launch and startled birds](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/artemis-ii-launch-one-extraordinary-photo)\n  - [A photo captures black spots on clothespins that reveal the environmental toll of conflict in Tehran](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/iran-pollution-one-extraordinary-photo)\n  \n  Newsletters\n  \n  [The World in Pictures Get The AP’s most compelling photographs sent directly to your inbox.](https:\/\/apnews.com\/newsletters?id=Photo+Gallery)\n  \n  [See All Newsletters](https:\/\/apnews.com\/newsletters)\n- [AP Investigations](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/ap-investigations\/)\n- [Climate](https:\/\/apnews.com\/climate-and-environment)\n  \n  SECTIONS\n  \n  [Indigenous peoples and climate](https:\/\/apnews.com\/climate-and-environment\/indigenous-peoples-adapting-to-and-combatting-climate-change) [Climate Questions](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/climate-questions) [Climate Migration](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/climate-migration) [India Focus](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/india-climate)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [Justice Department files complaint against Washington and its sewage authority for massive spill](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/potomac-river-sewage-leak-washington-345cf68d19670892408d1fffdf3cefe5)\n  - [Environmental groups sue Trump administration over approval of new ultra deep-water drilling project](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/trump-administration-lawsuit-bp-deepwater-drilling-103b76cdd07e2c4cc438185f71fe8598)\n  - [Federal judge strikes down some Trump administration actions that have slowed clean energy projects](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/burgum-trump-wind-solar-clean-energy-55b20ef5918b61771b215a91290a4556)\n- [Health](https:\/\/apnews.com\/health)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [What to know about psychedelic retreats, a booming business with few safety guardrails](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/psychedelic-retreats-mushrooms-ayahuasca-safety-8c909155400efb3e0675aa9d4cad385b)\n  - [Dr. Oz announces a 50-state audit of Medicaid program oversight](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/dr-oz-cms-fraud-trump-medicaid-health-20e1315861bf715bf5f9d977fd99e9f0)\n  - [A small but growing movement wants you to put down your phone. But first read this](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/internet-screens-phone-addiction-attention-bde9f575a54921ca320d30519783c250)\n  - [Easily distracted? How to improve your attention span](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/attention-span-improve-focus-social-media-2334290ba5d8206c18aeca0090be2f3f)\n  - [Trump signs order to speed review of psychedelics, including the controversial drug ibogaine](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/ibogaine-psychedelic-trump-fda-ptsd-veterans-kennedy-a9940fa57fa1457fc064eb5165003524)\n  - [Younger adult colon cancer deaths are concentrated in people with less education, study says](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/colon-cancer-deaths-young-adults-78c0a3287f2d29575b4004e07230b993)\n- [Tech](https:\/\/apnews.com\/technology)\n  \n  SECTIONS\n  \n  [Artificial Intelligence](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/artificial-intelligence) [Social Media](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/social-media)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [Apple's 50-year odyssey has redefined technology, pop culture and comeback stories](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/apple-50-years-anniversary-computer-iphone-b462b82f1e202f28a75ab1a8070c00b7)\n  - [Jury finds Instagram and YouTube liable in a landmark social media addiction trial](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/social-media-addiction-trial-la-5e54075023d837ccdc76c4ca512e925d)\n  - [One Tech Tip: Don't use rice for your device. Here's how to dry out your smartphone](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/one-tech-tip-drying-phones-2a173bc38f2f188e35e3487b27f9da32)\n- [Lifestyle](https:\/\/apnews.com\/lifestyle)\n  \n  SECTIONS\n  \n  [Food & Recipes](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/recipes) [Gardening](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/gardening) [Fashion](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/fashion) [Homes](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/homes) [Travel](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/travel) [Pets](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/pets)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [Consumers are lost at sea as seafood sustainability grows more complex](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/sustainable-seafood-definitions-6444f6ae191b72664bc135bfb60f994b)\n  - [Zach Galifianakis brings humor to gardening in a Netflix series premiering on Earth Day](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/galifianakis-gardening-tv-show-521ab8b6ceb5b33838b75cbd11145462)\n  - [To make hosting less stressful, strive for connection and not perfection](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/hosting-party-stress-food-guests-2b5e6b08fda9776a2e27e1f1775439d5)\n- [Religion](https:\/\/apnews.com\/religion)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [Trump and other top Republicans will read passages in a marathon Bible event](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/trump-bible-reading-conservative-christians-evangelicals-453a6a5abdfd757a97b6053b6da1dbed)\n  - ['If my people': Here's why the Bible passage Trump will read aloud is so potent and polarizing](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/donald-trump-bible-reading-marathon-christian-evangelicals-307cba34a42e73ed2222ca36305c2637)\n  - [Pope criticizes colonization of Africa's minerals as he arrives in Equatorial Guinea](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/africa-pope-equatorial-guinea-0134a6982c295c125259c5fa4eb73395)\n  \n  Newsletters\n  \n  [World of Faith Comprehensive global coverage of how religion shapes our world.](https:\/\/apnews.com\/newsletters?id=World+of+Faith)\n  \n  [See All Newsletters](https:\/\/apnews.com\/newsletters)\n- [Español](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/noticias)\n  \n  SECTIONS\n  \n  [Deportes](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/deportes) [Donald Trump](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/noticias\/donald-trump)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [Fauna y vegetación en el paisaje radiactivo de Chernóbil muestran la resiliencia de la naturaleza](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/ucrania-chernobil-naturaleza-radiacion-guerra-caballos-54eea1c73d638c19a45565fe607d3f28)\n  - [Suben los precios del petróleo y las acciones en Wall Street ceden un poco](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/mercados-mundiales-iran-petroleo-87ffc8cb3748774f95b15599249a3d61)\n  - [Japón elimina la prohibición de exportar armas letales en un cambio de su política pacifista](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/japon-armas-sanae-1873b04ea9619db5941a23f2d8d0761e)\n- [Most watched videos](https:\/\/apnews.com\/video)\n- [Standards](https:\/\/apnews.com\/projects\/news-values-and-principles\/)\n- [Quizzes](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/quizzes)\n- [Press Releases](https:\/\/apnews.com\/press-releases)\n- [My Account](https:\/\/apnews.com\/login)\n- [AP News Code of Conduct](https:\/\/apnews.com\/community-guidelines)\n- - [World](https:\/\/apnews.com\/world-news)\n    \n    - [Iran war](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/iran)\n    - 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[Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer is leaving Trump's Cabinet after abuse of power allegations](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/lori-chavez-deremer-resigns-trump-cabinet-926a5d655890fe5ec348cbf959233481)\n  - [Democrat Cherfilus-McCormick of Florida resigns before the House can sanction her in ethics case](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/cherfilusmccormick-ethics-hearing-house-376eaaa9ff51a7bf66a9a5528822d2ef)\n  - [Virginia voters deciding on redistricting plan that could boost Democrats' seats in Congress](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/virginia-redistricting-election-congress-trump-78e0e68100119011b1b439634f6b6fa1)\n  \n  Newsletters\n  \n  [Ground Game Exclusive insights and key stories from the world of politics.](https:\/\/apnews.com\/newsletters?id=Ground_Game)\n  \n  [See All Newsletters](https:\/\/apnews.com\/newsletters)\n- [Sports](https:\/\/apnews.com\/sports)\n  \n  SECTIONS\n  \n  [NBA](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/nba) [MLB](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/mlb) [NFL](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/nfl) [Golf](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/golf) [Soccer](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/soccer) [NHL](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/nhl) [Auto Racing](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/auto-racing) [AP Top 25 College Football Poll](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/ap-top-25-college-football-poll)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - 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[South Korean police seek to arrest K-pop mogul behind BTS](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/south-korea-bang-hybe-arrest-bts-00e181bfbe471c541118d67f7ccad7bd)\n  - [Alan Osmond, the eldest member of the Osmonds, has died at 76](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/alan-osmond-dies-osmonds-7a31e43e8ed3e82eb262d0f060d468e7)\n  - [A timeline leading up to D4vd's murder charge in the killing of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/d4vd-celeste-rivas-hernandez-timeline-100e62a0e54ca5d5786d5f7d1570c33c)\n  \n  Newsletters\n  \n  [AP Entertainment Wire Get AP's first personalized newsletter delivering you entertainment news twice a week.](https:\/\/apnews.com\/newsletters?id=AP+Entertainment+Wire)\n  \n  [See All Newsletters](https:\/\/apnews.com\/newsletters)\n- [Business](https:\/\/apnews.com\/business)\n  \n  SECTIONS\n  \n  [Tariffs](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/tariffs) [Inflation](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/inflation) [Financial Markets](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/financial-markets) [Financial Wellness](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/financial-wellness) [Technology](https:\/\/apnews.com\/technology)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [Tim Cook will step down as Apple CEO and hand reins over to the iPhone maker's hardware leader](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/apple-tim-cook-ceo-chage-john-tenus-3e179f3ba156f37ebdc4da5c137a8263)\n  - [Warsh says he got no pressure from Trump to cut rates even as president publicly pushes for them](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/federal-reserve-kevin-warsh-jerome-powell-dd88a3f06eddcada4db555fe11e547eb)\n  - [Stocks slip and oil prices rise on uncertainty about US-Iran ceasefire talks](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/stocks-markets-iran-oil-trump-2a433707e09976e2e77f2eba3a225f3d)\n- [Science](https:\/\/apnews.com\/science)\n  \n  SECTIONS\n  \n  [Space](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/space) [Animals](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/animals) [The Ancient World](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/archaeology-and-anthropology) [Climate](https:\/\/apnews.com\/climate-and-environment) [Medicine](https:\/\/apnews.com\/health)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket is grounded after launching satellite into the wrong orbit](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/blue-origin-new-glenn-rocket-launch-9498c077799420170960680a04e52f84)\n- [Fact Check](https:\/\/apnews.com\/ap-fact-check)\n- [Oddities](https:\/\/apnews.com\/oddities)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [1 million bees make for bumper-to-buzzer traffic on a Tennessee highway ramp](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/bees-highway-crash-tennessee-592ae29c23856d6b67bcc7123fe9867a)\n  - [Humanoid robots run a Chinese half-marathon alongside flesh-and-blood competitors](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/china-robot-half-marathon-153c6823bd628625106ed26267874d21)\n  - [Hot dogs and steaks and bacon, oh my! Meat raffles keep a beloved Midwest tradition alive](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/meat-raffles-charity-gambling-minnesota-wisconsin-ny-a9700ca9e106a618903c73a5d6a9abd3)\n  - [Fatou, the world's oldest gorilla living in captivity, celebrates her 69th birthday at Berlin Zoo](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/gorilla-germany-fatou-berlin-zoo-0196b95f3b6d48593bb7c872cab51adf)\n  - [Viral phenomenon in Argentina has young people identifying themselves as animals](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/argentina-teenagers-identifying-as-animals-therians-tiktok-54d158c4842f6515e31d83a260cdf31f)\n  - [California homeowner rolls out 'unwelcome' mat for black bear living under his house](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/black-bear-california-evicted-crawl-space-8126aa9962e99bf1ae4e45e09659630f)\n- [Be Well](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/be-well)\n  \n  SECTIONS\n  \n  [Trending](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/be-well-trending) [Better health](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/be-well-health) [At home](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/be-well-living) [Working well](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/working-well) [For the climate](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/be-well-climate) [Eating well](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/be-well-food)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [What to know about psychedelic retreats, a booming business with few safety guardrails](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/psychedelic-retreats-mushrooms-ayahuasca-safety-8c909155400efb3e0675aa9d4cad385b)\n  - [Working Well: Returning to the office can disrupt life. Here are some tips to navigate the changes](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/remote-work-return-to-office-mandate-commute-7ab9bb7e9b658f430167f2a613b49008)\n  - [Screen fatigue is real. Experts share tips to find relief](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/computer-screens-eye-health-e0c99719204526ed5f08423f1b15f557)\n- [Newsletters](https:\/\/apnews.com\/newsletters)\n- [Photography](https:\/\/apnews.com\/photography)\n  \n  SECTIONS\n  \n  [2025 YEAR END PHOTOS](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/2025-year-end-photos) [Photo Essays](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/photo-essays)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [Working unseen to frame risk and ritual in a conflict-zone funeral](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/funeral-gunfire-conflict-zone-extraordinary-photo)\n  - [How a remote camera captured the Artemis II launch and startled birds](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/artemis-ii-launch-one-extraordinary-photo)\n  - [A photo captures black spots on clothespins that reveal the environmental toll of conflict in Tehran](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/iran-pollution-one-extraordinary-photo)\n  \n  Newsletters\n  \n  [The World in Pictures Get The AP’s most compelling photographs sent directly to your inbox.](https:\/\/apnews.com\/newsletters?id=Photo+Gallery)\n  \n  [See All Newsletters](https:\/\/apnews.com\/newsletters)\n- [AP Investigations](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/ap-investigations\/)\n- [Climate](https:\/\/apnews.com\/climate-and-environment)\n  \n  SECTIONS\n  \n  [Indigenous peoples and climate](https:\/\/apnews.com\/climate-and-environment\/indigenous-peoples-adapting-to-and-combatting-climate-change) [Climate Questions](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/climate-questions) [Climate Migration](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/climate-migration) [India Focus](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/india-climate)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [Justice Department files complaint against Washington and its sewage authority for massive spill](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/potomac-river-sewage-leak-washington-345cf68d19670892408d1fffdf3cefe5)\n  - [Environmental groups sue Trump administration over approval of new ultra deep-water drilling project](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/trump-administration-lawsuit-bp-deepwater-drilling-103b76cdd07e2c4cc438185f71fe8598)\n  - [Federal judge strikes down some Trump administration actions that have slowed clean energy projects](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/burgum-trump-wind-solar-clean-energy-55b20ef5918b61771b215a91290a4556)\n- [Health](https:\/\/apnews.com\/health)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [What to know about psychedelic retreats, a booming business with few safety guardrails](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/psychedelic-retreats-mushrooms-ayahuasca-safety-8c909155400efb3e0675aa9d4cad385b)\n  - [Dr. Oz announces a 50-state audit of Medicaid program oversight](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/dr-oz-cms-fraud-trump-medicaid-health-20e1315861bf715bf5f9d977fd99e9f0)\n  - [A small but growing movement wants you to put down your phone. But first read this](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/internet-screens-phone-addiction-attention-bde9f575a54921ca320d30519783c250)\n  - [Easily distracted? How to improve your attention span](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/attention-span-improve-focus-social-media-2334290ba5d8206c18aeca0090be2f3f)\n  - [Trump signs order to speed review of psychedelics, including the controversial drug ibogaine](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/ibogaine-psychedelic-trump-fda-ptsd-veterans-kennedy-a9940fa57fa1457fc064eb5165003524)\n  - [Younger adult colon cancer deaths are concentrated in people with less education, study says](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/colon-cancer-deaths-young-adults-78c0a3287f2d29575b4004e07230b993)\n- [Tech](https:\/\/apnews.com\/technology)\n  \n  SECTIONS\n  \n  [Artificial Intelligence](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/artificial-intelligence) [Social Media](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/social-media)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [Apple's 50-year odyssey has redefined technology, pop culture and comeback stories](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/apple-50-years-anniversary-computer-iphone-b462b82f1e202f28a75ab1a8070c00b7)\n  - [Jury finds Instagram and YouTube liable in a landmark social media addiction trial](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/social-media-addiction-trial-la-5e54075023d837ccdc76c4ca512e925d)\n  - [One Tech Tip: Don't use rice for your device. Here's how to dry out your smartphone](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/one-tech-tip-drying-phones-2a173bc38f2f188e35e3487b27f9da32)\n- [Lifestyle](https:\/\/apnews.com\/lifestyle)\n  \n  SECTIONS\n  \n  [Food & Recipes](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/recipes) [Gardening](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/gardening) [Fashion](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/fashion) [Homes](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/homes) [Travel](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/travel) [Pets](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/pets)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [Consumers are lost at sea as seafood sustainability grows more complex](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/sustainable-seafood-definitions-6444f6ae191b72664bc135bfb60f994b)\n  - [Zach Galifianakis brings humor to gardening in a Netflix series premiering on Earth Day](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/galifianakis-gardening-tv-show-521ab8b6ceb5b33838b75cbd11145462)\n  - [To make hosting less stressful, strive for connection and not perfection](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/hosting-party-stress-food-guests-2b5e6b08fda9776a2e27e1f1775439d5)\n- [Religion](https:\/\/apnews.com\/religion)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [Trump and other top Republicans will read passages in a marathon Bible event](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/trump-bible-reading-conservative-christians-evangelicals-453a6a5abdfd757a97b6053b6da1dbed)\n  - ['If my people': Here's why the Bible passage Trump will read aloud is so potent and polarizing](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/donald-trump-bible-reading-marathon-christian-evangelicals-307cba34a42e73ed2222ca36305c2637)\n  - [Pope criticizes colonization of Africa's minerals as he arrives in Equatorial Guinea](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/africa-pope-equatorial-guinea-0134a6982c295c125259c5fa4eb73395)\n  \n  Newsletters\n  \n  [World of Faith Comprehensive global coverage of how religion shapes our world.](https:\/\/apnews.com\/newsletters?id=World+of+Faith)\n  \n  [See All Newsletters](https:\/\/apnews.com\/newsletters)\n- [Español](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/noticias)\n  \n  SECTIONS\n  \n  [Deportes](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/deportes) [Donald Trump](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/noticias\/donald-trump)\n  \n  TOP STORIES\n  \n  - [Fauna y vegetación en el paisaje radiactivo de Chernóbil muestran la resiliencia de la naturaleza](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/ucrania-chernobil-naturaleza-radiacion-guerra-caballos-54eea1c73d638c19a45565fe607d3f28)\n  - [Suben los precios del petróleo y las acciones en Wall Street ceden un poco](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/mercados-mundiales-iran-petroleo-87ffc8cb3748774f95b15599249a3d61)\n  - [Japón elimina la prohibición de exportar armas letales en un cambio de su política pacifista](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/japon-armas-sanae-1873b04ea9619db5941a23f2d8d0761e)\n- [Most watched videos](https:\/\/apnews.com\/video)\n- [Standards](https:\/\/apnews.com\/projects\/news-values-and-principles\/)\n- [Quizzes](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/quizzes)\n- [Press Releases](https:\/\/apnews.com\/press-releases)\n- [My Account](https:\/\/apnews.com\/login)\n- [AP News Code of Conduct](https:\/\/apnews.com\/community-guidelines)\n- - [World](https:\/\/apnews.com\/world-news)\n    \n    - [Iran war](https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/iran)\n    - 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All Rights Reserved.\n\nlive [Iran war](https:\/\/apnews.com\/live\/iran-war-israel-trump-04-21-2026)\n\n[Virginia election](https:\/\/apnews.com\/projects\/elections-2026\/virginia-special-general-results-question-1\/)\n\n[Billy Donovan resigns](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/chicago-bulls-donovan-9f5dbf49d62028d6dd7d3b9099305844)\n\n[Alan Osmond dies](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/alan-osmond-dies-osmonds-7a31e43e8ed3e82eb262d0f060d468e7)\n\n[Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/cherfilusmccormick-ethics-hearing-house-376eaaa9ff51a7bf66a9a5528822d2ef)\n\n[World News](https:\/\/apnews.com\/world-news)\n\n# The fall of Bashar Assad after 13 years of war in Syria brings to an end a decades-long dynasty\n\n## The fall of Bashar Assad after 13 years of war in Syria brings to an end a decades-long dynasty\n0 seconds of 1 minute, 25 secondsVolume 90%\n\nPress shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts\n\nKeyboard Shortcuts\n\nEnabledDisabled\n\nShortcuts Open\/Close\/ or ?\n\nPlay\/PauseSPACE\n\nIncrease Volume↑\n\nDecrease Volume↓\n\nSeek Forward→\n\nSeek Backward←\n\nCaptions On\/Offc\n\nFullscreen\/Exit Fullscreenf\n\nMute\/Unmutem\n\nDecrease Caption Size\\-\n\nIncrease Caption Size\\+ or =\n\nSeek %0-9\n\nNext Up\n\nYoung voters in Hungary played crucial role in ending Orbán's 16-year rule\n\n01:49\n\n0\\.5x\n\n1x\n\n1\\.25x\n\n1\\.5x\n\n2x\n\nfacebook\n\nlinkedin\n\nEmail\n\nreddit\n\nLink\n\nhttps:\/\/apnews.com\/video\/bashar-assad-syria-syria-government-rebellions-and-uprisings-international-agreements-3fb0996e248a4aba908b3f0c97d992a7\n\nCopied\n\nAuto360p\n\n1080p\n\n720p\n\n540p\n\n360p\n\n270p\n\n180p\n\nLive\n\n00:00\n\n01:24\n\n01:25\n\nMore Videos\n\n01:49\n\nYoung voters in Hungary played crucial role in ending Orbán's 16-year rule\n\n00:54\n\nAP Top Stories April 16\n\n01:00\n\nAP top stories April 19\n\n01:00\n\nAP top stories April 16\n\n01:02\n\nAP top stories April 17\n\n00:57\n\nAP Top Stories April 15\n\n01:02\n\nAP top stories April 15\n\n00:59\n\nAP Top Stories April 21\n\n01:13\n\nTrump's approval on economy falls during Iran war new AP-NORC poll shows\n\n01:14\n\nFaithful flock to visit Pope Francis' tomb one year after his death\n\nClose\n\n1 of 18 \\|\n\nSyrians poured into streets echoing with celebratory gunfire on Sunday after a stunning rebel advance reached the capital, ending the Assad family’s 50 years of iron rule but raising questions about the future of the country and the wider region.\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad looks on at his country's flag at the opening of the 16th ordinary session of Arab Summit in Tunis, May 22, 2004. (AP Photo\/Amr Nabil, File)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/f1c30b2\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/2000x1289+0+0\/resize\/599x386!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F42%2Fba%2Fe96b481633ccdf068a65e592a8b1%2F20ecebea421d40dab2c0ca91b99117a2)\n\n2 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad looks on at his country’s flag at the opening of the 16th ordinary session of Arab Summit in Tunis, May 22, 2004. (AP Photo\/Amr Nabil, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad reviews the presidential guard during the welcoming ceremony in Athens, Dec. 15, 2003. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris, File)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/a1b79be\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/2000x1381+0+0\/resize\/599x414!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2Fb8%2Fca%2F7a8dff2ffe337b5a5f166a9d20b3%2Fba556c0890654feeb6b4622f57eda204)\n\n3 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad reviews the presidential guard during the welcoming ceremony in Athens, Dec. 15, 2003. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - President-elect Lt. Gen. Bashar al Assad, right, attends military training games with Ali Aslan, Chief of Staff of the Syrian army, July 12, 2000, in Syria. (SANA via AP, File)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/773c8ec\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/1992x1524+0+0\/resize\/599x458!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F2d%2F93%2Fa7a8aa8194d39e2da1f636937a2c%2F5716cd7b69804940859eeb1ffbcfe75b)\n\n4 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - President-elect Lt. Gen. Bashar al Assad, right, attends military training games with Ali Aslan, Chief of Staff of the Syrian army, July 12, 2000, in Syria. (SANA via AP, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks at a press conference in Cairo, Oct. 2, 2000. (AP Photo\/Amr Nabil, File)](data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIzOTBweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=)\n\n5 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks at a press conference in Cairo, Oct. 2, 2000. (AP Photo\/Amr Nabil, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - In this photo released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, speaks with Syrian President Bashar Assad in a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 30, 2024. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File)](data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIzNTdweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=)\n\n6 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - In this photo released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, speaks with Syrian President Bashar Assad in a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 30, 2024. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, talks with former US presidential candidate Senator John Kerry in Damascus, Jan. 8, 2004. (SANA via AP, File)](data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIzNjVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU1OHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=)\n\n7 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, talks with former US presidential candidate Senator John Kerry in Damascus, Jan. 8, 2004. (SANA via AP, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, speaks with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, left, in Damascus, Syria, May 3, 2023. (AP Photo\/Omar Sanadiki, File)](data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIzOTlweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=)\n\n8 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, speaks with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, left, in Damascus, Syria, May 3, 2023. (AP Photo\/Omar Sanadiki, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, gestures while speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, Jan. 7, 2020. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)](data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIzOTNweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=)\n\n9 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, gestures while speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, Jan. 7, 2020. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - Jordan's King Abdullah II, left, shakes hands with Syrian President Bashar Assad, as he sees him off at Marka military airport in Amman, Jordan, Feb. 2, 2005. (AP Photo\/Hussein Malla, File)](data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0NzBweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=)\n\n10 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - Jordan’s King Abdullah II, left, shakes hands with Syrian President Bashar Assad, as he sees him off at Marka military airport in Amman, Jordan, Feb. 2, 2005. (AP Photo\/Hussein Malla, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - In this photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, meets with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, during the Arab summit in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, May 19, 2023. (SANA via AP, File)](data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0MDBweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=)\n\n11 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - In this photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, meets with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, during the Arab summit in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, May 19, 2023. (SANA via AP, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, shakes hands with Pope John Paul II before the Pontiff boards a plane after a four-day visit to Syria in Damascus, May 8, 2001. (AP Photo\/Enric Marti, File)](data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0NTBweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=)\n\n12 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, shakes hands with Pope John Paul II before the Pontiff boards a plane after a four-day visit to Syria in Damascus, May 8, 2001. (AP Photo\/Enric Marti, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, left, and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad sign documents during a meeting in Damascus, Syria, March 7, 2005. (AP Photo, File)](data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0MjRweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=)\n\n13 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, left, and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad sign documents during a meeting in Damascus, Syria, March 7, 2005. (AP Photo, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - In this March 22, 2005 file photo, Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, talks to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi prior the 17th League of Arab States' summit in Algiers. (AP Photo\/Nabil, File)](data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0ODJweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=)\n\n14 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - In this March 22, 2005 file photo, Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, talks to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi prior the 17th League of Arab States’ summit in Algiers. (AP Photo\/Nabil, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - In this Nov. 20, 2017, photo, Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, embraces Syrian President Bashar Assad in the Bocharov Ruchei residence in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia. (Mikhail Klimentyev, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)](data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0NTFweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=)\n\n15 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - In this Nov. 20, 2017, photo, Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, embraces Syrian President Bashar Assad in the Bocharov Ruchei residence in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia. (Mikhail Klimentyev, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, and his wife Asma are greeted by Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair outside his 10 Downing Street, London residence, Dec.16, 2002, on the start of their official visit to Britain. (AP Photo\/Max Nash, File)](data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0NTFweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=)\n\n16 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, and his wife Asma are greeted by Britain’s Prime Minister Tony Blair outside his 10 Downing Street, London residence, Dec.16, 2002, on the start of their official visit to Britain. (AP Photo\/Max Nash, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - Bashar Assad, second right, is seen during the closing session of the ruling Baath party congress in Damascus, Syria, June 20, 2000. (SANA via AP, File)](data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0NjJweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=)\n\n17 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - Bashar Assad, second right, is seen during the closing session of the ruling Baath party congress in Damascus, Syria, June 20, 2000. (SANA via AP, File)\n\nRead More\n\n![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad and his wife Asma prepare to vote at a polling station during the presidential elections in the town of Douma, in the eastern Ghouta region, near the Syrian capital Damascus, Syria, May 26, 2021. (AP Photo\/Hassan Ammar, File)](data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIzOTlweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=)\n\n18 of 18 \\|\n\nFILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad and his wife Asma prepare to vote at a polling station during the presidential elections in the town of Douma, in the eastern Ghouta region, near the Syrian capital Damascus, Syria, May 26, 2021. (AP Photo\/Hassan Ammar, File)\n\nRead More\n\nBy [ZEINA KARAM](https:\/\/apnews.com\/author\/zeina-karam) and [ABBY SEWELL](https:\/\/apnews.com\/author\/abby-sewell)\n\nUpdated 4:20 PM GMT, December 8, 2024\n\nAdd AP News on Google\n\nAdd AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google.\n\nShare\n\n![Comments](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/4f4506e\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/112x119+0+0\/resize\/112x119!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F8c%2F0d%2F15433a314663a3ae8a349ee0d9fa%2Fveifora-comment-icon.png)\n\nShare\n\n- [Facebook](https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/dialog\/share?app_id=870613919693099&display=popup&href=https%3A%2F%2Fapnews.com%2Farticle%2Fsyria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d%3Futm_source%3DFacebook%26utm_medium%3Dshare)\n- Copy\n  \n  Link copied\n- [Email](mailto:?body=The%20fall%20of%20Bashar%20Assad%20after%2013%20years%20of%20war%20in%20Syria%20brings%20to%20an%20end%20a%20decades-long%20dynasty%0A%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fapnews.com%2Farticle%2Fsyria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d%3Futm_source%3DEmail%26utm_medium%3Dshare%0A%0ASyrian%20President%20Bashar%20Assad%20has%20fled%20the%20country.%20Assad%E2%80%99s%20departure%20on%20Sunday%20brings%20to%20a%20dramatic%20close%20his%20nearly%2014-year%20struggle%20to%20hold%20onto%20power%20in%20a%20brutal%20civil%20war%20that%20became%20a%20proxy%20battlefield%20for%20regional%20and%20international%20powers.)\n- [X](https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fapnews.com%2Farticle%2Fsyria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_medium%3Dshare&text=The%20fall%20of%20Bashar%20Assad%20after%2013%20years%20of%20war%20in%20Syria%20brings%20to%20an%20end%20a%20decades-long%20dynasty)\n- [LinkedIn](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d)\n- [Bluesky](https:\/\/bsky.app\/intent\/compose?text=https%3A%2F%2Fapnews.com%2Farticle%2Fsyria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d%3Futm_source%3Dbluesky%26utm_medium%3Dshare%26nbsp%3B%3Cbr%3EThe%20fall%20of%20Bashar%20Assad%20after%2013%20years%20of%20war%20in%20Syria%20brings%20to%20an%20end%20a%20decades-long%20dynasty)\n- [Flipboard](https:\/\/share.flipboard.com\/bookmarklet\/popout?v=2&title=The%20fall%20of%20Bashar%20Assad%20after%2013%20years%20of%20war%20in%20Syria%20brings%20to%20an%20end%20a%20decades-long%20dynasty&url=https%3A%2F%2Fapnews.com%2Farticle%2Fsyria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d%3Futm_source%3DFlipboard%20Share%26utm_medium%3Dshare)\n- [Pinterest](https:\/\/pinterest.com\/pin\/create\/bookmarklet\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fapnews.com%2Farticle%2Fsyria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d%3Futm_source%3DPinterest%26utm_medium%3Dshare&description=The%20fall%20of%20Bashar%20Assad%20after%2013%20years%20of%20war%20in%20Syria%20brings%20to%20an%20end%20a%20decades-long%20dynasty&media=https:\/\/assets.apnews.com\/42\/ba\/e96b481633ccdf068a65e592a8b1\/20ecebea421d40dab2c0ca91b99117a2)\n- [Reddit](https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/submit?url=https%3A%2F%2Fapnews.com%2Farticle%2Fsyria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d%3Futm_source%3Dreddit%26utm_medium%3Dshare&title=Reddit%20Share)\n\nBEIRUT (AP) — Syrian President Bashar Assad fled the country on Sunday, bringing to a dramatic close his nearly 14-year struggle to hold onto control as his country fragmented in a brutal civil war that became a proxy battlefield for regional and international powers.\n\nThe exit of the 59-year-old Assad stood in stark contrast to his first months as Syria’s unlikely president in 2000, when many hoped he would be a young reformer after three decades of his father’s iron grip. At age 34, the Western-educated ophthalmologist appeared as a geeky tech-savvy fan of computers with a gentle demeanor.\n\n![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad reviews the presidential guard during the welcoming ceremony in Athens, Dec. 15, 2003. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris, File)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/a1b79be\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/2000x1381+0+0\/resize\/599x414!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2Fb8%2Fca%2F7a8dff2ffe337b5a5f166a9d20b3%2Fba556c0890654feeb6b4622f57eda204)\n\nSyrian President Bashar Assad reviews the presidential guard during the welcoming ceremony in Athens, Dec. 15, 2003. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris, File)\n\nRead More\n\nBut when faced with protests of his rule that erupted in March 2011, Assad turned to the brutal tactics of his father to crush dissent. As the uprising hemorrhaged into an outright civil war, he unleashed his military to blast opposition-held cities, with support from allies Iran and Russia.\n\nInternational rights groups and prosecutors alleged widespread use of torture and extrajudicial killings in Syria’s government-run detention centers. The war has killed nearly half a million people and displaced half of the country’s prewar population of 23 million.\n\nThe conflict appeared to be frozen in recent years, with Assad’s government regaining control of most of Syria’s territory while the northwest remained under the control of opposition groups and the northeast under Kurdish control.\n\n**What to know**\n\n- **How it happened:** Two [seismic weeks](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-assad-ousted-rebel-offensive-timeline-8c54a8b97803d4b10cde53b97227128e) that toppled Syria’s government.\n- **End of a decades-long dynasty:** The [fall of Bashar Assad after nearly 14 years of war in Syria](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d) puts an end to the Assad family’s 54 years of rule.\n- **Who leads the opposition:** [Abu Mohammed al-Golani](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-insurgents-algolani-hts-aab4c8894238904a4e351076726499fb), a former al-Qaida commander who cut ties with the group years ago and says he embraces pluralism, leads the biggest rebel faction and is poised to chart the country’s future direction.\n- **Trump’s reaction:** President-elect Donald Trump said that [the U.S. military should stay out](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/trump-syria-biden-administration-rebels-assad-72015f143aa6b40bb62c09724c71e34f) of the fast-escalating conflict in Syria.\n\nAlthough Damascus remained under crippling Western sanctions, neighboring countries had begun to resign themselves to Assad’s continued hold on power. The [Arab League](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-arab-league-cairo-saudi-arabia-qatar-7de1b30587560531dad1df4eb29f4ef3) reinstated Syria’s membership last year, and Saudi Arabia in May [announced](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-saudi-arabia-ambassador-assad-normalization-6933f506a1b15ce53f1cb574189e70c4) the appointment of its first ambassador since severing ties with Damascus 12 years ago.\n\nHowever, the geopolitical tide turned quickly when opposition groups in northwest Syria in late November launched a [surprise offensive.](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-attack-clashes-aleppo-9c07da6f83036f34d4b18a479de9d085)  Government forces quickly collapsed while Assad’s allies, preoccupied by other conflicts — Russia’s war in Ukraine and the yearlong wars between Israel and the Iran-backed militant groups Hezbollah and Hamas — appeared reluctant to forcefully intervene.\n\n![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, gestures while speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, Jan. 7, 2020. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/0d00523\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/4747x3114+0+0\/resize\/599x393!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F46%2F45%2Fa0ed07d9f00d404944a1f68fdc97%2F0518adfce3e14a5d8c46dba4dde37309)\n\nSyrian President Bashar Assad, left, gestures while speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, Jan. 7, 2020. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)\n\n![FILE - In this photo released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, speaks with Syrian President Bashar Assad in a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 30, 2024. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/ea391db\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/2200x1311+0+0\/resize\/599x357!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F74%2F05%2F7131c4c35a1956c28c6ad6e02981%2F7cfac32a6c4d4917b1248c0087a2b708)\n\nIn this photo released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, speaks with Syrian President Bashar Assad in a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 30, 2024. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File)\n## An end to decades of family rule\nAssad came to power in 2000 by a twist of fate. His father had been cultivating Bashar’s oldest brother, Basil, as his successor, but in 1994, Basil was killed in a car crash in Damascus. Bashar was brought home from his ophthalmology practice in London, put through military training and elevated to the rank of colonel to establish his credentials so he could one day rule.\n\nWhen Hafez Assad died in 2000, parliament quickly lowered the presidential age requirement from 40 to 34. Bashar’s elevation was sealed by a nationwide referendum, in which he was the only candidate.\n\nHafez, a lifelong military man, ruled the country for nearly 30 years during which he set up a Soviet-style centralized economy and kept such a stifling hand over dissent that Syrians feared even to joke about politics to their friends.\n\nHe pursued a secular ideology that sought to bury sectarian differences under Arab nationalism and the image of heroic resistance to Israel. He formed an alliance with the Shiite clerical leadership in Iran, sealed Syrian domination over Lebanon and set up a network of Palestinian and Lebanese militant groups.\n\n![FILE - President-elect Lt. Gen. Bashar al Assad, right, attends military training games with Ali Aslan, Chief of Staff of the Syrian army, July 12, 2000, in Syria. (SANA via AP, File)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/773c8ec\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/1992x1524+0+0\/resize\/599x458!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F2d%2F93%2Fa7a8aa8194d39e2da1f636937a2c%2F5716cd7b69804940859eeb1ffbcfe75b)\n\nPresident-elect Lt. Gen. Bashar al Assad, right, attends military training games with Ali Aslan, Chief of Staff of the Syrian army, July 12, 2000, in Syria. (SANA via AP, File)\n\nRead More\n\nBashar initially seemed completely unlike his strongman father.\n\nTall and lanky with a slight lisp, he had a quiet, gentle demeanor. His only official position before becoming president was head of the Syrian Computer Society. His wife, [Asma al-Akhras](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/asma-assad-leukemia-syria-cancer-diagnosis-bashar-b58128fa973ebf2045afab9764a940c8), whom he married several months after taking office, was attractive, stylish and British-born.\n\nThe young couple, who eventually had three children, seemed to shun trappings of power. They lived in an apartment in the upscale Abu Rummaneh district of Damascus, as opposed to a palatial mansion like other Arab leaders.\n\nRelated Stories\n\n[![German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, right, and Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa attend a press conference in Berlin, Germany, Monday, March 30, 2026. (AP Photo\/Markus Schreiber)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/1527742\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/6486x4324+0+0\/resize\/599x399!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F4e%2F4a%2F123fc3ac1bd3551b9fc9e5c1fb97%2Fe47c345290dc43ecbbee77b5e60e4cce)](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/germany-syria-refugees-migrants-return-738b393d1ece62dc238b06a72ea081f5)\n\n[German leader raises prospect of many Syrians returning home as the country’s president visits](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/germany-syria-refugees-migrants-return-738b393d1ece62dc238b06a72ea081f5)\n\n2 MIN READ\n\n[![A member of Syria's Internal Security Forces sits on a vehicle parked outside a church in the predominantly Christian town of Al-Suqaylabiyah, west of Hama, Syria, Saturday, March 28, 2026, following overnight violence. (AP Photo\/Omar Albam)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/9e0e8b1\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/5638x3759+0+0\/resize\/599x399!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2Fcc%2F58%2F1d70c4f31c8314d124d778ed0f91%2Fb011819fa47441d7ba40f2277aba8769)](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-christians-sectarian-attacks-suqaylabiyah-d3c66fd9713084c1fbab0c307c77bcf9)\n\n[Sectarian attacks rock a Christian town in Syria after a dispute](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-christians-sectarian-attacks-suqaylabiyah-d3c66fd9713084c1fbab0c307c77bcf9)\n\n2 MIN READ\n\n[![Protesters hold signs during a demonstration against against new alcohol restrictions that limit sales largely to Christian areas in Damascus, Syria, Sunday, March 22, 2026.(AP Photo\/Omar Sanadiki)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/86194bb\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/6000x4000+0+0\/resize\/599x399!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F78%2F5b%2Fb1e201e65dbf33ce1010ab99db61%2F90532fec022f475eafc3b7408319fd2c)](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-alsharaa-alcohol-ban-christians-ed5f71c33b444b6be791644a915da9a7)\n\n[Syrian authorities’ new limits on alcohol sales in Damascus spark backlash](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-alsharaa-alcohol-ban-christians-ed5f71c33b444b6be791644a915da9a7)\n\n3 MIN READ\n\nInitially upon coming to office, Assad freed political prisoners and allowed more open discourse. In the “Damascus Spring,” salons for intellectuals emerged where Syrians could discuss art, culture and politics to a degree impossible under his father.\n\nBut after 1,000 intellectuals signed a public petition calling for multiparty democracy and greater freedoms in 2001, and others tried to form a political party, the salons were snuffed out by the feared secret police, who jailed dozens of activists.\n\n## Tested by the Arab Spring, Assad relied on old alliances to stay in power\nInstead of a political opening, Assad turned to economic reforms. He slowly lifted economic restrictions, let in foreign banks, threw the doors open to imports and empowered the private sector. Damascus and other cities long mired in drabness saw a flourishing of shopping malls, new restaurants and consumer goods. Tourism swelled.\n\nAbroad, he stuck to the line his father had set, based on the alliance with Iran and a policy of insisting on a full return of the Israel-annexed Golan Heights, although in practice Assad never militarily confronted Israel.\n\nIn 2005, he suffered a heavy blow with the loss of Syria’s decades-old control over neighboring Lebanon after the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. With many Lebanese accusing Damascus of being behind the slaying, Syria was forced to withdraw its troops from the country and a pro-American government came to power.\n\n![FILE - Bashar Assad, second right, is seen during the closing session of the ruling Baath party congress in Damascus, Syria, June 20, 2000. (SANA via AP, File)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/8c46275\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/2000x1544+0+0\/resize\/599x462!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2Fba%2F36%2Fb2629d23f3ccdee5e15d3c667cd7%2F08c64ec1a9114e66944df73306014780)\n\nBashar Assad, second right, is seen during the closing session of the ruling Baath party congress in Damascus, Syria, June 20, 2000. (SANA via AP, File)\n\n![FILE - Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, left, and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad sign documents during a meeting in Damascus, Syria, March 7, 2005. (AP Photo, File)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/f01ce14\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/1928x1365+0+0\/resize\/599x424!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F83%2F1a%2F88ce5b1457eb81361dfc50be3e08%2F3ff62c5d5f9347f99ae4655a325372f4)\n\nLebanese President Emile Lahoud, left, and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad sign documents during a meeting in Damascus, Syria, March 7, 2005. (AP Photo, File)\n\nAt the same time, the Arab world split into two camps — one of U.S.-allied, Sunni-led countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt, the other of Syria and Shiite-led Iran with their ties to Hezbollah and Palestinian militants.\n\nThroughout, Assad relied largely on the same power base at home as his father: his Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam comprising around 10% of the population. Many of the positions in his government went to younger generations of the same families that had worked for his father. Drawn in as well were members of the new middle class created by his reforms, including prominent Sunni merchant families.\n\nAssad also turned to his own family. His younger brother Maher headed the elite Presidential Guard and would lead the crackdown against the uprising. Their sister Bushra was a strong voice in his inner circle, along with her husband, Deputy Defense Minister Assef Shawkat, until he was killed in a 2012 bombing. Bashar’s cousin, Rami Makhlouf, became the country’s biggest businessman, heading a financial empire before the two had a falling-out that led to Makhlouf being [pushed aside.](https:\/\/apnews.com\/international-news-general-news-d403bdc40371d890d368acfc473483bf)\n\nAssad also increasingly entrusted key roles to his wife, Asma, before she announced in May that she was undergoing [treatment for leukemia](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/asma-assad-leukemia-syria-cancer-diagnosis-bashar-b58128fa973ebf2045afab9764a940c8) and stepped out of the limelight.\n\nWhen 2011 protests erupted in Tunisia and Egypt, eventually toppling their rulers, Assad dismissed the possibility of the same occurring in Syria, insisting his regime was more in tune with its people. After the Arab Spring wave reached Syria, his security forces staged a brutal crackdown while Assad consistently denied he faced a popular revolt. He instead blamed “foreign-backed terrorists” trying to destabilize his regime.\n\nHis rhetoric struck a chord with many in Syria’s minority groups — including Christians, Druze and Shiites — as well as some Sunnis who feared the prospect of rule by Sunni extremists even more than they disliked Assad’s authoritarian rule.\n\nAs the uprising spiraled into a civil war, millions of Syrians fled to Jordan, Turkey, Iraq and Lebanon and on to Europe.\n\nIronically, on Feb. 26, 2011, two days after the fall of Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak to protesters and just days before the wave of Arab Spring protests swept into his country, Assad emailed a joke he had seen mocking the Egyptian leader’s stubborn refusal to step down.\n\n[![ABBY SEWELL](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/67de56c\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/1234x1234+0+226\/resize\/100x100!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F5f%2F85%2F7a55a1464af8ab5c9b84558feebc%2Fabby-headshot-abby-sewell.jpg)](https:\/\/apnews.com\/author\/abby-sewell)\n\n[ABBY SEWELL](https:\/\/apnews.com\/author\/abby-sewell)\n\nSewell is the Associated Press news director for Lebanon, Syria and Iraq. She joined the AP in 2022 but has been based in the region since 2016, reporting and guiding coverage on some of its most significant news stories.\n\n[twitter](https:\/\/twitter.com\/sewella)\n\n[mailto](mailto:asewell@ap.org)\n\n## Conversation\nFollow this conversation to be notified when new comments are postedfollow\n\nLog in\n\n\\|\n\nSign up\n\nAll comments are subject to our [Community Guidelines](https:\/\/apnews.com\/community-guidelines).  \nPlease note that comments are not moderated immediately — every post is reviewed before appearing publicly to ensure it meets our community guidelines. 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All Rights Reserved.\n\n- [twitter](https:\/\/twitter.com\/AP)\n- [instagram](https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/apnews\/)\n- [facebook](https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/APNews)\n\n![](https:\/\/sb.scorecardresearch.com\/p?c1=2&c2=3005041&cv=4.4.0&cj=1&comscorekw=World%20News)","attrs_readable_markdown":"BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian President Bashar Assad fled the country on Sunday, bringing to a dramatic close his nearly 14-year struggle to hold onto control as his country fragmented in a brutal civil war that became a proxy battlefield for regional and international powers.\n\nThe exit of the 59-year-old Assad stood in stark contrast to his first months as Syria’s unlikely president in 2000, when many hoped he would be a young reformer after three decades of his father’s iron grip. At age 34, the Western-educated ophthalmologist appeared as a geeky tech-savvy fan of computers with a gentle demeanor.\n\n![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad reviews the presidential guard during the welcoming ceremony in Athens, Dec. 15, 2003. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris, File)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/a1b79be\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/2000x1381+0+0\/resize\/599x414!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2Fb8%2Fca%2F7a8dff2ffe337b5a5f166a9d20b3%2Fba556c0890654feeb6b4622f57eda204)\n\nSyrian President Bashar Assad reviews the presidential guard during the welcoming ceremony in Athens, Dec. 15, 2003. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris, File)\n\nBut when faced with protests of his rule that erupted in March 2011, Assad turned to the brutal tactics of his father to crush dissent. As the uprising hemorrhaged into an outright civil war, he unleashed his military to blast opposition-held cities, with support from allies Iran and Russia.\n\nInternational rights groups and prosecutors alleged widespread use of torture and extrajudicial killings in Syria’s government-run detention centers. The war has killed nearly half a million people and displaced half of the country’s prewar population of 23 million.\n\nThe conflict appeared to be frozen in recent years, with Assad’s government regaining control of most of Syria’s territory while the northwest remained under the control of opposition groups and the northeast under Kurdish control.\n\n**What to know**\n\n- **How it happened:** Two [seismic weeks](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-assad-ousted-rebel-offensive-timeline-8c54a8b97803d4b10cde53b97227128e) that toppled Syria’s government.\n- **End of a decades-long dynasty:** The [fall of Bashar Assad after nearly 14 years of war in Syria](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d) puts an end to the Assad family’s 54 years of rule.\n- **Who leads the opposition:** [Abu Mohammed al-Golani](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-insurgents-algolani-hts-aab4c8894238904a4e351076726499fb), a former al-Qaida commander who cut ties with the group years ago and says he embraces pluralism, leads the biggest rebel faction and is poised to chart the country’s future direction.\n- **Trump’s reaction:** President-elect Donald Trump said that [the U.S. military should stay out](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/trump-syria-biden-administration-rebels-assad-72015f143aa6b40bb62c09724c71e34f) of the fast-escalating conflict in Syria.\n\nAlthough Damascus remained under crippling Western sanctions, neighboring countries had begun to resign themselves to Assad’s continued hold on power. The [Arab League](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-arab-league-cairo-saudi-arabia-qatar-7de1b30587560531dad1df4eb29f4ef3) reinstated Syria’s membership last year, and Saudi Arabia in May [announced](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-saudi-arabia-ambassador-assad-normalization-6933f506a1b15ce53f1cb574189e70c4) the appointment of its first ambassador since severing ties with Damascus 12 years ago.\n\nHowever, the geopolitical tide turned quickly when opposition groups in northwest Syria in late November launched a [surprise offensive.](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-attack-clashes-aleppo-9c07da6f83036f34d4b18a479de9d085)  Government forces quickly collapsed while Assad’s allies, preoccupied by other conflicts — Russia’s war in Ukraine and the yearlong wars between Israel and the Iran-backed militant groups Hezbollah and Hamas — appeared reluctant to forcefully intervene.\n\n![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, gestures while speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, Jan. 7, 2020. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/0d00523\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/4747x3114+0+0\/resize\/599x393!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F46%2F45%2Fa0ed07d9f00d404944a1f68fdc97%2F0518adfce3e14a5d8c46dba4dde37309)\n\nSyrian President Bashar Assad, left, gestures while speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, Jan. 7, 2020. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)\n\n![FILE - In this photo released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, speaks with Syrian President Bashar Assad in a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 30, 2024. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/ea391db\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/2200x1311+0+0\/resize\/599x357!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F74%2F05%2F7131c4c35a1956c28c6ad6e02981%2F7cfac32a6c4d4917b1248c0087a2b708)\n\nIn this photo released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, speaks with Syrian President Bashar Assad in a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 30, 2024. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File)\n## An end to decades of family rule\nAssad came to power in 2000 by a twist of fate. His father had been cultivating Bashar’s oldest brother, Basil, as his successor, but in 1994, Basil was killed in a car crash in Damascus. Bashar was brought home from his ophthalmology practice in London, put through military training and elevated to the rank of colonel to establish his credentials so he could one day rule.\n\nWhen Hafez Assad died in 2000, parliament quickly lowered the presidential age requirement from 40 to 34. Bashar’s elevation was sealed by a nationwide referendum, in which he was the only candidate.\n\nHafez, a lifelong military man, ruled the country for nearly 30 years during which he set up a Soviet-style centralized economy and kept such a stifling hand over dissent that Syrians feared even to joke about politics to their friends.\n\nHe pursued a secular ideology that sought to bury sectarian differences under Arab nationalism and the image of heroic resistance to Israel. He formed an alliance with the Shiite clerical leadership in Iran, sealed Syrian domination over Lebanon and set up a network of Palestinian and Lebanese militant groups.\n\n![FILE - President-elect Lt. Gen. Bashar al Assad, right, attends military training games with Ali Aslan, Chief of Staff of the Syrian army, July 12, 2000, in Syria. (SANA via AP, File)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/773c8ec\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/1992x1524+0+0\/resize\/599x458!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F2d%2F93%2Fa7a8aa8194d39e2da1f636937a2c%2F5716cd7b69804940859eeb1ffbcfe75b)\n\nPresident-elect Lt. Gen. Bashar al Assad, right, attends military training games with Ali Aslan, Chief of Staff of the Syrian army, July 12, 2000, in Syria. (SANA via AP, File)\n\nBashar initially seemed completely unlike his strongman father.\n\nTall and lanky with a slight lisp, he had a quiet, gentle demeanor. His only official position before becoming president was head of the Syrian Computer Society. His wife, [Asma al-Akhras](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/asma-assad-leukemia-syria-cancer-diagnosis-bashar-b58128fa973ebf2045afab9764a940c8), whom he married several months after taking office, was attractive, stylish and British-born.\n\nThe young couple, who eventually had three children, seemed to shun trappings of power. They lived in an apartment in the upscale Abu Rummaneh district of Damascus, as opposed to a palatial mansion like other Arab leaders.\n\n[![German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, right, and Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa attend a press conference in Berlin, Germany, Monday, March 30, 2026. (AP Photo\/Markus Schreiber)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/1527742\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/6486x4324+0+0\/resize\/599x399!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F4e%2F4a%2F123fc3ac1bd3551b9fc9e5c1fb97%2Fe47c345290dc43ecbbee77b5e60e4cce)](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/germany-syria-refugees-migrants-return-738b393d1ece62dc238b06a72ea081f5)\n\n2 MIN READ\n\n[![A member of Syria's Internal Security Forces sits on a vehicle parked outside a church in the predominantly Christian town of Al-Suqaylabiyah, west of Hama, Syria, Saturday, March 28, 2026, following overnight violence. (AP Photo\/Omar Albam)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/9e0e8b1\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/5638x3759+0+0\/resize\/599x399!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2Fcc%2F58%2F1d70c4f31c8314d124d778ed0f91%2Fb011819fa47441d7ba40f2277aba8769)](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-christians-sectarian-attacks-suqaylabiyah-d3c66fd9713084c1fbab0c307c77bcf9)\n\n2 MIN READ\n\n[![Protesters hold signs during a demonstration against against new alcohol restrictions that limit sales largely to Christian areas in Damascus, Syria, Sunday, March 22, 2026.(AP Photo\/Omar Sanadiki)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/86194bb\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/6000x4000+0+0\/resize\/599x399!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F78%2F5b%2Fb1e201e65dbf33ce1010ab99db61%2F90532fec022f475eafc3b7408319fd2c)](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/syria-alsharaa-alcohol-ban-christians-ed5f71c33b444b6be791644a915da9a7)\n\n3 MIN READ\n\nInitially upon coming to office, Assad freed political prisoners and allowed more open discourse. In the “Damascus Spring,” salons for intellectuals emerged where Syrians could discuss art, culture and politics to a degree impossible under his father.\n\nBut after 1,000 intellectuals signed a public petition calling for multiparty democracy and greater freedoms in 2001, and others tried to form a political party, the salons were snuffed out by the feared secret police, who jailed dozens of activists.\n\n## Tested by the Arab Spring, Assad relied on old alliances to stay in power\nInstead of a political opening, Assad turned to economic reforms. He slowly lifted economic restrictions, let in foreign banks, threw the doors open to imports and empowered the private sector. Damascus and other cities long mired in drabness saw a flourishing of shopping malls, new restaurants and consumer goods. Tourism swelled.\n\nAbroad, he stuck to the line his father had set, based on the alliance with Iran and a policy of insisting on a full return of the Israel-annexed Golan Heights, although in practice Assad never militarily confronted Israel.\n\nIn 2005, he suffered a heavy blow with the loss of Syria’s decades-old control over neighboring Lebanon after the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. With many Lebanese accusing Damascus of being behind the slaying, Syria was forced to withdraw its troops from the country and a pro-American government came to power.\n\n![FILE - Bashar Assad, second right, is seen during the closing session of the ruling Baath party congress in Damascus, Syria, June 20, 2000. (SANA via AP, File)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/8c46275\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/2000x1544+0+0\/resize\/599x462!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2Fba%2F36%2Fb2629d23f3ccdee5e15d3c667cd7%2F08c64ec1a9114e66944df73306014780)\n\nBashar Assad, second right, is seen during the closing session of the ruling Baath party congress in Damascus, Syria, June 20, 2000. (SANA via AP, File)\n\n![FILE - Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, left, and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad sign documents during a meeting in Damascus, Syria, March 7, 2005. (AP Photo, File)](https:\/\/dims.apnews.com\/dims4\/default\/f01ce14\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/1928x1365+0+0\/resize\/599x424!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F83%2F1a%2F88ce5b1457eb81361dfc50be3e08%2F3ff62c5d5f9347f99ae4655a325372f4)\n\nLebanese President Emile Lahoud, left, and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad sign documents during a meeting in Damascus, Syria, March 7, 2005. (AP Photo, File)\n\nAt the same time, the Arab world split into two camps — one of U.S.-allied, Sunni-led countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt, the other of Syria and Shiite-led Iran with their ties to Hezbollah and Palestinian militants.\n\nThroughout, Assad relied largely on the same power base at home as his father: his Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam comprising around 10% of the population. Many of the positions in his government went to younger generations of the same families that had worked for his father. Drawn in as well were members of the new middle class created by his reforms, including prominent Sunni merchant families.\n\nAssad also turned to his own family. His younger brother Maher headed the elite Presidential Guard and would lead the crackdown against the uprising. Their sister Bushra was a strong voice in his inner circle, along with her husband, Deputy Defense Minister Assef Shawkat, until he was killed in a 2012 bombing. Bashar’s cousin, Rami Makhlouf, became the country’s biggest businessman, heading a financial empire before the two had a falling-out that led to Makhlouf being [pushed aside.](https:\/\/apnews.com\/international-news-general-news-d403bdc40371d890d368acfc473483bf)\n\nAssad also increasingly entrusted key roles to his wife, Asma, before she announced in May that she was undergoing [treatment for leukemia](https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/asma-assad-leukemia-syria-cancer-diagnosis-bashar-b58128fa973ebf2045afab9764a940c8) and stepped out of the limelight.\n\nWhen 2011 protests erupted in Tunisia and Egypt, eventually toppling their rulers, Assad dismissed the possibility of the same occurring in Syria, insisting his regime was more in tune with its people. After the Arab Spring wave reached Syria, his security forces staged a brutal crackdown while Assad consistently denied he faced a popular revolt. He instead blamed “foreign-backed terrorists” trying to destabilize his regime.\n\nHis rhetoric struck a chord with many in Syria’s minority groups — including Christians, Druze and Shiites — as well as some Sunnis who feared the prospect of rule by Sunni extremists even more than they disliked Assad’s authoritarian rule.\n\nAs the uprising spiraled into a civil war, millions of Syrians fled to Jordan, Turkey, Iraq and Lebanon and on to Europe.\n\nIronically, on Feb. 26, 2011, two days after the fall of Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak to protesters and just days before the wave of Arab Spring protests swept into his country, Assad emailed a joke he had seen mocking the Egyptian leader’s stubborn refusal to step down.","meta_canonical":null,"ml_categories_json":"{\"\/News\":888,\"\/News\/Politics\":701,\"\/News\/Politics\/Campaigns_and_Elections\":530,\"\/Law_and_Government\":176}","ml_types_json":"{\"\/Article\":998,\"\/Article\/News_Update\":986}","ml_intent_types_json":"{\"Informational\":999}","meta_language":"en","attrs_author":null,"attrs_publish_time":1733634632,"attrs_original_publish_time":1733634632,"attrs_is_republished":0,"attrs_nr_words":"11017","attrs_boilerpipe_nr_words":"1566","body_ext_links_number":27,"body_int_links_number":179,"meta_nofollow":0,"meta_noarchive":1,"props_was_rendered":1,"src_redirect":"","download_time_msec":824,"download_ttfb_msec":688,"download_size":109106}

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Fall of Syria's President puts an end to the Assad family’s 54 years of rule | AP News

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Assad came to power in 2000 by a twist of fate. His father had been cultivating Bashar’s oldest brother, Basil, as his successor, but in 1994, Basil was killed in a car crash in Damascus

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Play/PauseSPACE Increase Volume↑ Decrease Volume↓ Seek Forward→ Seek Backward← Captions On/Offc Fullscreen/Exit Fullscreenf Mute/Unmutem Decrease Caption Size\- Increase Caption Size\+ or = Seek %0-9 Next Up Young voters in Hungary played crucial role in ending Orbán's 16-year rule 01:49 0\.5x 1x 1\.25x 1\.5x 2x facebook linkedin Email reddit Link https://apnews.com/video/bashar-assad-syria-syria-government-rebellions-and-uprisings-international-agreements-3fb0996e248a4aba908b3f0c97d992a7 Copied Auto360p 1080p 720p 540p 360p 270p 180p Live 00:00 01:24 01:25 More Videos 01:49 Young voters in Hungary played crucial role in ending Orbán's 16-year rule 00:54 AP Top Stories April 16 01:00 AP top stories April 19 01:00 AP top stories April 16 01:02 AP top stories April 17 00:57 AP Top Stories April 15 01:02 AP top stories April 15 00:59 AP Top Stories April 21 01:13 Trump's approval on economy falls during Iran war new AP-NORC poll shows 01:14 Faithful flock to visit Pope Francis' tomb one year after his death Close 1 of 18 \| Syrians poured into streets echoing with celebratory gunfire on Sunday after a stunning rebel advance reached the capital, ending the Assad family’s 50 years of iron rule but raising questions about the future of the country and the wider region. Read More ![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad looks on at his country's flag at the opening of the 16th ordinary session of Arab Summit in Tunis, May 22, 2004. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil, File)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/f1c30b2/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2000x1289+0+0/resize/599x386!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F42%2Fba%2Fe96b481633ccdf068a65e592a8b1%2F20ecebea421d40dab2c0ca91b99117a2) 2 of 18 \| FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad looks on at his country’s flag at the opening of the 16th ordinary session of Arab Summit in Tunis, May 22, 2004. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil, File) Read More ![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad reviews the presidential guard during the welcoming ceremony in Athens, Dec. 15, 2003. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris, File)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/a1b79be/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2000x1381+0+0/resize/599x414!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2Fb8%2Fca%2F7a8dff2ffe337b5a5f166a9d20b3%2Fba556c0890654feeb6b4622f57eda204) 3 of 18 \| FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad reviews the presidential guard during the welcoming ceremony in Athens, Dec. 15, 2003. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris, File) Read More ![FILE - President-elect Lt. Gen. Bashar al Assad, right, attends military training games with Ali Aslan, Chief of Staff of the Syrian army, July 12, 2000, in Syria. (SANA via AP, File)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/773c8ec/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1992x1524+0+0/resize/599x458!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F2d%2F93%2Fa7a8aa8194d39e2da1f636937a2c%2F5716cd7b69804940859eeb1ffbcfe75b) 4 of 18 \| FILE - President-elect Lt. Gen. Bashar al Assad, right, attends military training games with Ali Aslan, Chief of Staff of the Syrian army, July 12, 2000, in Syria. (SANA via AP, File) Read More ![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks at a press conference in Cairo, Oct. 2, 2000. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil, File)](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIzOTBweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=) 5 of 18 \| FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks at a press conference in Cairo, Oct. 2, 2000. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil, File) Read More ![FILE - In this photo released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, speaks with Syrian President Bashar Assad in a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 30, 2024. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File)](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIzNTdweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=) 6 of 18 \| FILE - In this photo released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, speaks with Syrian President Bashar Assad in a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 30, 2024. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File) Read More ![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, talks with former US presidential candidate Senator John Kerry in Damascus, Jan. 8, 2004. (SANA via AP, File)](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIzNjVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU1OHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=) 7 of 18 \| FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, talks with former US presidential candidate Senator John Kerry in Damascus, Jan. 8, 2004. (SANA via AP, File) Read More ![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, speaks with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, left, in Damascus, Syria, May 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki, File)](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIzOTlweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=) 8 of 18 \| FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, speaks with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, left, in Damascus, Syria, May 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki, File) Read More ![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, gestures while speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, Jan. 7, 2020. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIzOTNweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=) 9 of 18 \| FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, gestures while speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, Jan. 7, 2020. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File) Read More ![FILE - Jordan's King Abdullah II, left, shakes hands with Syrian President Bashar Assad, as he sees him off at Marka military airport in Amman, Jordan, Feb. 2, 2005. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, File)](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0NzBweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=) 10 of 18 \| FILE - Jordan’s King Abdullah II, left, shakes hands with Syrian President Bashar Assad, as he sees him off at Marka military airport in Amman, Jordan, Feb. 2, 2005. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, File) Read More ![FILE - In this photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, meets with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, during the Arab summit in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, May 19, 2023. (SANA via AP, File)](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0MDBweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=) 11 of 18 \| FILE - In this photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, meets with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, during the Arab summit in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, May 19, 2023. (SANA via AP, File) Read More ![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, shakes hands with Pope John Paul II before the Pontiff boards a plane after a four-day visit to Syria in Damascus, May 8, 2001. (AP Photo/Enric Marti, File)](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0NTBweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=) 12 of 18 \| FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, shakes hands with Pope John Paul II before the Pontiff boards a plane after a four-day visit to Syria in Damascus, May 8, 2001. (AP Photo/Enric Marti, File) Read More ![FILE - Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, left, and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad sign documents during a meeting in Damascus, Syria, March 7, 2005. (AP Photo, File)](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0MjRweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=) 13 of 18 \| FILE - Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, left, and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad sign documents during a meeting in Damascus, Syria, March 7, 2005. (AP Photo, File) Read More ![FILE - In this March 22, 2005 file photo, Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, talks to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi prior the 17th League of Arab States' summit in Algiers. (AP Photo/Nabil, File)](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0ODJweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=) 14 of 18 \| FILE - In this March 22, 2005 file photo, Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, talks to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi prior the 17th League of Arab States’ summit in Algiers. (AP Photo/Nabil, File) Read More ![FILE - In this Nov. 20, 2017, photo, Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, embraces Syrian President Bashar Assad in the Bocharov Ruchei residence in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia. (Mikhail Klimentyev, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0NTFweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=) 15 of 18 \| FILE - In this Nov. 20, 2017, photo, Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, embraces Syrian President Bashar Assad in the Bocharov Ruchei residence in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia. (Mikhail Klimentyev, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File) Read More ![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, and his wife Asma are greeted by Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair outside his 10 Downing Street, London residence, Dec.16, 2002, on the start of their official visit to Britain. (AP Photo/Max Nash, File)](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0NTFweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=) 16 of 18 \| FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, and his wife Asma are greeted by Britain’s Prime Minister Tony Blair outside his 10 Downing Street, London residence, Dec.16, 2002, on the start of their official visit to Britain. (AP Photo/Max Nash, File) Read More ![FILE - Bashar Assad, second right, is seen during the closing session of the ruling Baath party congress in Damascus, Syria, June 20, 2000. (SANA via AP, File)](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI0NjJweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=) 17 of 18 \| FILE - Bashar Assad, second right, is seen during the closing session of the ruling Baath party congress in Damascus, Syria, June 20, 2000. (SANA via AP, File) Read More ![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad and his wife Asma prepare to vote at a polling station during the presidential elections in the town of Douma, in the eastern Ghouta region, near the Syrian capital Damascus, Syria, May 26, 2021. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar, File)](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIzOTlweCIgd2lkdGg9IjU5OXB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=) 18 of 18 \| FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad and his wife Asma prepare to vote at a polling station during the presidential elections in the town of Douma, in the eastern Ghouta region, near the Syrian capital Damascus, Syria, May 26, 2021. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar, File) Read More By [ZEINA KARAM](https://apnews.com/author/zeina-karam) and [ABBY SEWELL](https://apnews.com/author/abby-sewell) Updated 4:20 PM GMT, December 8, 2024 Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share ![Comments](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/4f4506e/2147483647/strip/true/crop/112x119+0+0/resize/112x119!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F8c%2F0d%2F15433a314663a3ae8a349ee0d9fa%2Fveifora-comment-icon.png) Share - [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/dialog/share?app_id=870613919693099&display=popup&href=https%3A%2F%2Fapnews.com%2Farticle%2Fsyria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d%3Futm_source%3DFacebook%26utm_medium%3Dshare) - Copy Link copied - [Email](mailto:?body=The%20fall%20of%20Bashar%20Assad%20after%2013%20years%20of%20war%20in%20Syria%20brings%20to%20an%20end%20a%20decades-long%20dynasty%0A%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fapnews.com%2Farticle%2Fsyria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d%3Futm_source%3DEmail%26utm_medium%3Dshare%0A%0ASyrian%20President%20Bashar%20Assad%20has%20fled%20the%20country.%20Assad%E2%80%99s%20departure%20on%20Sunday%20brings%20to%20a%20dramatic%20close%20his%20nearly%2014-year%20struggle%20to%20hold%20onto%20power%20in%20a%20brutal%20civil%20war%20that%20became%20a%20proxy%20battlefield%20for%20regional%20and%20international%20powers.) - [X](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fapnews.com%2Farticle%2Fsyria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_medium%3Dshare&text=The%20fall%20of%20Bashar%20Assad%20after%2013%20years%20of%20war%20in%20Syria%20brings%20to%20an%20end%20a%20decades-long%20dynasty) - [LinkedIn](https://apnews.com/article/syria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d) - [Bluesky](https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=https%3A%2F%2Fapnews.com%2Farticle%2Fsyria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d%3Futm_source%3Dbluesky%26utm_medium%3Dshare%26nbsp%3B%3Cbr%3EThe%20fall%20of%20Bashar%20Assad%20after%2013%20years%20of%20war%20in%20Syria%20brings%20to%20an%20end%20a%20decades-long%20dynasty) - [Flipboard](https://share.flipboard.com/bookmarklet/popout?v=2&title=The%20fall%20of%20Bashar%20Assad%20after%2013%20years%20of%20war%20in%20Syria%20brings%20to%20an%20end%20a%20decades-long%20dynasty&url=https%3A%2F%2Fapnews.com%2Farticle%2Fsyria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d%3Futm_source%3DFlipboard%20Share%26utm_medium%3Dshare) - [Pinterest](https://pinterest.com/pin/create/bookmarklet/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fapnews.com%2Farticle%2Fsyria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d%3Futm_source%3DPinterest%26utm_medium%3Dshare&description=The%20fall%20of%20Bashar%20Assad%20after%2013%20years%20of%20war%20in%20Syria%20brings%20to%20an%20end%20a%20decades-long%20dynasty&media=https://assets.apnews.com/42/ba/e96b481633ccdf068a65e592a8b1/20ecebea421d40dab2c0ca91b99117a2) - [Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/submit?url=https%3A%2F%2Fapnews.com%2Farticle%2Fsyria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d%3Futm_source%3Dreddit%26utm_medium%3Dshare&title=Reddit%20Share) BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian President Bashar Assad fled the country on Sunday, bringing to a dramatic close his nearly 14-year struggle to hold onto control as his country fragmented in a brutal civil war that became a proxy battlefield for regional and international powers. The exit of the 59-year-old Assad stood in stark contrast to his first months as Syria’s unlikely president in 2000, when many hoped he would be a young reformer after three decades of his father’s iron grip. At age 34, the Western-educated ophthalmologist appeared as a geeky tech-savvy fan of computers with a gentle demeanor. ![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad reviews the presidential guard during the welcoming ceremony in Athens, Dec. 15, 2003. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris, File)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/a1b79be/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2000x1381+0+0/resize/599x414!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2Fb8%2Fca%2F7a8dff2ffe337b5a5f166a9d20b3%2Fba556c0890654feeb6b4622f57eda204) Syrian President Bashar Assad reviews the presidential guard during the welcoming ceremony in Athens, Dec. 15, 2003. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris, File) Read More But when faced with protests of his rule that erupted in March 2011, Assad turned to the brutal tactics of his father to crush dissent. As the uprising hemorrhaged into an outright civil war, he unleashed his military to blast opposition-held cities, with support from allies Iran and Russia. International rights groups and prosecutors alleged widespread use of torture and extrajudicial killings in Syria’s government-run detention centers. The war has killed nearly half a million people and displaced half of the country’s prewar population of 23 million. The conflict appeared to be frozen in recent years, with Assad’s government regaining control of most of Syria’s territory while the northwest remained under the control of opposition groups and the northeast under Kurdish control. **What to know** - **How it happened:** Two [seismic weeks](https://apnews.com/article/syria-assad-ousted-rebel-offensive-timeline-8c54a8b97803d4b10cde53b97227128e) that toppled Syria’s government. - **End of a decades-long dynasty:** The [fall of Bashar Assad after nearly 14 years of war in Syria](https://apnews.com/article/syria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d) puts an end to the Assad family’s 54 years of rule. - **Who leads the opposition:** [Abu Mohammed al-Golani](https://apnews.com/article/syria-insurgents-algolani-hts-aab4c8894238904a4e351076726499fb), a former al-Qaida commander who cut ties with the group years ago and says he embraces pluralism, leads the biggest rebel faction and is poised to chart the country’s future direction. - **Trump’s reaction:** President-elect Donald Trump said that [the U.S. military should stay out](https://apnews.com/article/trump-syria-biden-administration-rebels-assad-72015f143aa6b40bb62c09724c71e34f) of the fast-escalating conflict in Syria. Although Damascus remained under crippling Western sanctions, neighboring countries had begun to resign themselves to Assad’s continued hold on power. The [Arab League](https://apnews.com/article/syria-arab-league-cairo-saudi-arabia-qatar-7de1b30587560531dad1df4eb29f4ef3) reinstated Syria’s membership last year, and Saudi Arabia in May [announced](https://apnews.com/article/syria-saudi-arabia-ambassador-assad-normalization-6933f506a1b15ce53f1cb574189e70c4) the appointment of its first ambassador since severing ties with Damascus 12 years ago. However, the geopolitical tide turned quickly when opposition groups in northwest Syria in late November launched a [surprise offensive.](https://apnews.com/article/syria-attack-clashes-aleppo-9c07da6f83036f34d4b18a479de9d085) Government forces quickly collapsed while Assad’s allies, preoccupied by other conflicts — Russia’s war in Ukraine and the yearlong wars between Israel and the Iran-backed militant groups Hezbollah and Hamas — appeared reluctant to forcefully intervene. ![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, gestures while speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, Jan. 7, 2020. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/0d00523/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4747x3114+0+0/resize/599x393!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F46%2F45%2Fa0ed07d9f00d404944a1f68fdc97%2F0518adfce3e14a5d8c46dba4dde37309) Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, gestures while speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, Jan. 7, 2020. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File) ![FILE - In this photo released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, speaks with Syrian President Bashar Assad in a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 30, 2024. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/ea391db/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2200x1311+0+0/resize/599x357!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F74%2F05%2F7131c4c35a1956c28c6ad6e02981%2F7cfac32a6c4d4917b1248c0087a2b708) In this photo released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, speaks with Syrian President Bashar Assad in a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 30, 2024. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File) ## An end to decades of family rule Assad came to power in 2000 by a twist of fate. His father had been cultivating Bashar’s oldest brother, Basil, as his successor, but in 1994, Basil was killed in a car crash in Damascus. Bashar was brought home from his ophthalmology practice in London, put through military training and elevated to the rank of colonel to establish his credentials so he could one day rule. When Hafez Assad died in 2000, parliament quickly lowered the presidential age requirement from 40 to 34. Bashar’s elevation was sealed by a nationwide referendum, in which he was the only candidate. Hafez, a lifelong military man, ruled the country for nearly 30 years during which he set up a Soviet-style centralized economy and kept such a stifling hand over dissent that Syrians feared even to joke about politics to their friends. He pursued a secular ideology that sought to bury sectarian differences under Arab nationalism and the image of heroic resistance to Israel. He formed an alliance with the Shiite clerical leadership in Iran, sealed Syrian domination over Lebanon and set up a network of Palestinian and Lebanese militant groups. ![FILE - President-elect Lt. Gen. Bashar al Assad, right, attends military training games with Ali Aslan, Chief of Staff of the Syrian army, July 12, 2000, in Syria. (SANA via AP, File)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/773c8ec/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1992x1524+0+0/resize/599x458!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F2d%2F93%2Fa7a8aa8194d39e2da1f636937a2c%2F5716cd7b69804940859eeb1ffbcfe75b) President-elect Lt. Gen. Bashar al Assad, right, attends military training games with Ali Aslan, Chief of Staff of the Syrian army, July 12, 2000, in Syria. (SANA via AP, File) Read More Bashar initially seemed completely unlike his strongman father. Tall and lanky with a slight lisp, he had a quiet, gentle demeanor. His only official position before becoming president was head of the Syrian Computer Society. His wife, [Asma al-Akhras](https://apnews.com/article/asma-assad-leukemia-syria-cancer-diagnosis-bashar-b58128fa973ebf2045afab9764a940c8), whom he married several months after taking office, was attractive, stylish and British-born. The young couple, who eventually had three children, seemed to shun trappings of power. They lived in an apartment in the upscale Abu Rummaneh district of Damascus, as opposed to a palatial mansion like other Arab leaders. Related Stories [![German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, right, and Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa attend a press conference in Berlin, Germany, Monday, March 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/1527742/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6486x4324+0+0/resize/599x399!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F4e%2F4a%2F123fc3ac1bd3551b9fc9e5c1fb97%2Fe47c345290dc43ecbbee77b5e60e4cce)](https://apnews.com/article/germany-syria-refugees-migrants-return-738b393d1ece62dc238b06a72ea081f5) [German leader raises prospect of many Syrians returning home as the country’s president visits](https://apnews.com/article/germany-syria-refugees-migrants-return-738b393d1ece62dc238b06a72ea081f5) 2 MIN READ [![A member of Syria's Internal Security Forces sits on a vehicle parked outside a church in the predominantly Christian town of Al-Suqaylabiyah, west of Hama, Syria, Saturday, March 28, 2026, following overnight violence. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/9e0e8b1/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5638x3759+0+0/resize/599x399!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2Fcc%2F58%2F1d70c4f31c8314d124d778ed0f91%2Fb011819fa47441d7ba40f2277aba8769)](https://apnews.com/article/syria-christians-sectarian-attacks-suqaylabiyah-d3c66fd9713084c1fbab0c307c77bcf9) [Sectarian attacks rock a Christian town in Syria after a dispute](https://apnews.com/article/syria-christians-sectarian-attacks-suqaylabiyah-d3c66fd9713084c1fbab0c307c77bcf9) 2 MIN READ [![Protesters hold signs during a demonstration against against new alcohol restrictions that limit sales largely to Christian areas in Damascus, Syria, Sunday, March 22, 2026.(AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/86194bb/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/599x399!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F78%2F5b%2Fb1e201e65dbf33ce1010ab99db61%2F90532fec022f475eafc3b7408319fd2c)](https://apnews.com/article/syria-alsharaa-alcohol-ban-christians-ed5f71c33b444b6be791644a915da9a7) [Syrian authorities’ new limits on alcohol sales in Damascus spark backlash](https://apnews.com/article/syria-alsharaa-alcohol-ban-christians-ed5f71c33b444b6be791644a915da9a7) 3 MIN READ Initially upon coming to office, Assad freed political prisoners and allowed more open discourse. In the “Damascus Spring,” salons for intellectuals emerged where Syrians could discuss art, culture and politics to a degree impossible under his father. But after 1,000 intellectuals signed a public petition calling for multiparty democracy and greater freedoms in 2001, and others tried to form a political party, the salons were snuffed out by the feared secret police, who jailed dozens of activists. ## Tested by the Arab Spring, Assad relied on old alliances to stay in power Instead of a political opening, Assad turned to economic reforms. He slowly lifted economic restrictions, let in foreign banks, threw the doors open to imports and empowered the private sector. Damascus and other cities long mired in drabness saw a flourishing of shopping malls, new restaurants and consumer goods. Tourism swelled. Abroad, he stuck to the line his father had set, based on the alliance with Iran and a policy of insisting on a full return of the Israel-annexed Golan Heights, although in practice Assad never militarily confronted Israel. In 2005, he suffered a heavy blow with the loss of Syria’s decades-old control over neighboring Lebanon after the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. With many Lebanese accusing Damascus of being behind the slaying, Syria was forced to withdraw its troops from the country and a pro-American government came to power. ![FILE - Bashar Assad, second right, is seen during the closing session of the ruling Baath party congress in Damascus, Syria, June 20, 2000. (SANA via AP, File)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/8c46275/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2000x1544+0+0/resize/599x462!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2Fba%2F36%2Fb2629d23f3ccdee5e15d3c667cd7%2F08c64ec1a9114e66944df73306014780) Bashar Assad, second right, is seen during the closing session of the ruling Baath party congress in Damascus, Syria, June 20, 2000. (SANA via AP, File) ![FILE - Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, left, and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad sign documents during a meeting in Damascus, Syria, March 7, 2005. (AP Photo, File)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/f01ce14/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1928x1365+0+0/resize/599x424!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F83%2F1a%2F88ce5b1457eb81361dfc50be3e08%2F3ff62c5d5f9347f99ae4655a325372f4) Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, left, and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad sign documents during a meeting in Damascus, Syria, March 7, 2005. (AP Photo, File) At the same time, the Arab world split into two camps — one of U.S.-allied, Sunni-led countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt, the other of Syria and Shiite-led Iran with their ties to Hezbollah and Palestinian militants. Throughout, Assad relied largely on the same power base at home as his father: his Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam comprising around 10% of the population. Many of the positions in his government went to younger generations of the same families that had worked for his father. Drawn in as well were members of the new middle class created by his reforms, including prominent Sunni merchant families. Assad also turned to his own family. His younger brother Maher headed the elite Presidential Guard and would lead the crackdown against the uprising. Their sister Bushra was a strong voice in his inner circle, along with her husband, Deputy Defense Minister Assef Shawkat, until he was killed in a 2012 bombing. Bashar’s cousin, Rami Makhlouf, became the country’s biggest businessman, heading a financial empire before the two had a falling-out that led to Makhlouf being [pushed aside.](https://apnews.com/international-news-general-news-d403bdc40371d890d368acfc473483bf) Assad also increasingly entrusted key roles to his wife, Asma, before she announced in May that she was undergoing [treatment for leukemia](https://apnews.com/article/asma-assad-leukemia-syria-cancer-diagnosis-bashar-b58128fa973ebf2045afab9764a940c8) and stepped out of the limelight. When 2011 protests erupted in Tunisia and Egypt, eventually toppling their rulers, Assad dismissed the possibility of the same occurring in Syria, insisting his regime was more in tune with its people. After the Arab Spring wave reached Syria, his security forces staged a brutal crackdown while Assad consistently denied he faced a popular revolt. He instead blamed “foreign-backed terrorists” trying to destabilize his regime. His rhetoric struck a chord with many in Syria’s minority groups — including Christians, Druze and Shiites — as well as some Sunnis who feared the prospect of rule by Sunni extremists even more than they disliked Assad’s authoritarian rule. As the uprising spiraled into a civil war, millions of Syrians fled to Jordan, Turkey, Iraq and Lebanon and on to Europe. Ironically, on Feb. 26, 2011, two days after the fall of Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak to protesters and just days before the wave of Arab Spring protests swept into his country, Assad emailed a joke he had seen mocking the Egyptian leader’s stubborn refusal to step down. 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BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian President Bashar Assad fled the country on Sunday, bringing to a dramatic close his nearly 14-year struggle to hold onto control as his country fragmented in a brutal civil war that became a proxy battlefield for regional and international powers. The exit of the 59-year-old Assad stood in stark contrast to his first months as Syria’s unlikely president in 2000, when many hoped he would be a young reformer after three decades of his father’s iron grip. At age 34, the Western-educated ophthalmologist appeared as a geeky tech-savvy fan of computers with a gentle demeanor. ![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad reviews the presidential guard during the welcoming ceremony in Athens, Dec. 15, 2003. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris, File)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/a1b79be/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2000x1381+0+0/resize/599x414!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2Fb8%2Fca%2F7a8dff2ffe337b5a5f166a9d20b3%2Fba556c0890654feeb6b4622f57eda204) Syrian President Bashar Assad reviews the presidential guard during the welcoming ceremony in Athens, Dec. 15, 2003. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris, File) But when faced with protests of his rule that erupted in March 2011, Assad turned to the brutal tactics of his father to crush dissent. As the uprising hemorrhaged into an outright civil war, he unleashed his military to blast opposition-held cities, with support from allies Iran and Russia. International rights groups and prosecutors alleged widespread use of torture and extrajudicial killings in Syria’s government-run detention centers. The war has killed nearly half a million people and displaced half of the country’s prewar population of 23 million. The conflict appeared to be frozen in recent years, with Assad’s government regaining control of most of Syria’s territory while the northwest remained under the control of opposition groups and the northeast under Kurdish control. **What to know** - **How it happened:** Two [seismic weeks](https://apnews.com/article/syria-assad-ousted-rebel-offensive-timeline-8c54a8b97803d4b10cde53b97227128e) that toppled Syria’s government. - **End of a decades-long dynasty:** The [fall of Bashar Assad after nearly 14 years of war in Syria](https://apnews.com/article/syria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d) puts an end to the Assad family’s 54 years of rule. - **Who leads the opposition:** [Abu Mohammed al-Golani](https://apnews.com/article/syria-insurgents-algolani-hts-aab4c8894238904a4e351076726499fb), a former al-Qaida commander who cut ties with the group years ago and says he embraces pluralism, leads the biggest rebel faction and is poised to chart the country’s future direction. - **Trump’s reaction:** President-elect Donald Trump said that [the U.S. military should stay out](https://apnews.com/article/trump-syria-biden-administration-rebels-assad-72015f143aa6b40bb62c09724c71e34f) of the fast-escalating conflict in Syria. Although Damascus remained under crippling Western sanctions, neighboring countries had begun to resign themselves to Assad’s continued hold on power. The [Arab League](https://apnews.com/article/syria-arab-league-cairo-saudi-arabia-qatar-7de1b30587560531dad1df4eb29f4ef3) reinstated Syria’s membership last year, and Saudi Arabia in May [announced](https://apnews.com/article/syria-saudi-arabia-ambassador-assad-normalization-6933f506a1b15ce53f1cb574189e70c4) the appointment of its first ambassador since severing ties with Damascus 12 years ago. However, the geopolitical tide turned quickly when opposition groups in northwest Syria in late November launched a [surprise offensive.](https://apnews.com/article/syria-attack-clashes-aleppo-9c07da6f83036f34d4b18a479de9d085) Government forces quickly collapsed while Assad’s allies, preoccupied by other conflicts — Russia’s war in Ukraine and the yearlong wars between Israel and the Iran-backed militant groups Hezbollah and Hamas — appeared reluctant to forcefully intervene. ![FILE - Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, gestures while speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, Jan. 7, 2020. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/0d00523/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4747x3114+0+0/resize/599x393!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F46%2F45%2Fa0ed07d9f00d404944a1f68fdc97%2F0518adfce3e14a5d8c46dba4dde37309) Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, gestures while speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, Jan. 7, 2020. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File) ![FILE - In this photo released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, speaks with Syrian President Bashar Assad in a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 30, 2024. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/ea391db/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2200x1311+0+0/resize/599x357!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F74%2F05%2F7131c4c35a1956c28c6ad6e02981%2F7cfac32a6c4d4917b1248c0087a2b708) In this photo released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, speaks with Syrian President Bashar Assad in a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 30, 2024. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File) ## An end to decades of family rule Assad came to power in 2000 by a twist of fate. His father had been cultivating Bashar’s oldest brother, Basil, as his successor, but in 1994, Basil was killed in a car crash in Damascus. Bashar was brought home from his ophthalmology practice in London, put through military training and elevated to the rank of colonel to establish his credentials so he could one day rule. When Hafez Assad died in 2000, parliament quickly lowered the presidential age requirement from 40 to 34. Bashar’s elevation was sealed by a nationwide referendum, in which he was the only candidate. Hafez, a lifelong military man, ruled the country for nearly 30 years during which he set up a Soviet-style centralized economy and kept such a stifling hand over dissent that Syrians feared even to joke about politics to their friends. He pursued a secular ideology that sought to bury sectarian differences under Arab nationalism and the image of heroic resistance to Israel. He formed an alliance with the Shiite clerical leadership in Iran, sealed Syrian domination over Lebanon and set up a network of Palestinian and Lebanese militant groups. ![FILE - President-elect Lt. Gen. Bashar al Assad, right, attends military training games with Ali Aslan, Chief of Staff of the Syrian army, July 12, 2000, in Syria. (SANA via AP, File)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/773c8ec/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1992x1524+0+0/resize/599x458!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F2d%2F93%2Fa7a8aa8194d39e2da1f636937a2c%2F5716cd7b69804940859eeb1ffbcfe75b) President-elect Lt. Gen. Bashar al Assad, right, attends military training games with Ali Aslan, Chief of Staff of the Syrian army, July 12, 2000, in Syria. (SANA via AP, File) Bashar initially seemed completely unlike his strongman father. Tall and lanky with a slight lisp, he had a quiet, gentle demeanor. His only official position before becoming president was head of the Syrian Computer Society. His wife, [Asma al-Akhras](https://apnews.com/article/asma-assad-leukemia-syria-cancer-diagnosis-bashar-b58128fa973ebf2045afab9764a940c8), whom he married several months after taking office, was attractive, stylish and British-born. The young couple, who eventually had three children, seemed to shun trappings of power. They lived in an apartment in the upscale Abu Rummaneh district of Damascus, as opposed to a palatial mansion like other Arab leaders. [![German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, right, and Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa attend a press conference in Berlin, Germany, Monday, March 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/1527742/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6486x4324+0+0/resize/599x399!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F4e%2F4a%2F123fc3ac1bd3551b9fc9e5c1fb97%2Fe47c345290dc43ecbbee77b5e60e4cce)](https://apnews.com/article/germany-syria-refugees-migrants-return-738b393d1ece62dc238b06a72ea081f5) 2 MIN READ [![A member of Syria's Internal Security Forces sits on a vehicle parked outside a church in the predominantly Christian town of Al-Suqaylabiyah, west of Hama, Syria, Saturday, March 28, 2026, following overnight violence. (AP Photo/Omar Albam)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/9e0e8b1/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5638x3759+0+0/resize/599x399!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2Fcc%2F58%2F1d70c4f31c8314d124d778ed0f91%2Fb011819fa47441d7ba40f2277aba8769)](https://apnews.com/article/syria-christians-sectarian-attacks-suqaylabiyah-d3c66fd9713084c1fbab0c307c77bcf9) 2 MIN READ [![Protesters hold signs during a demonstration against against new alcohol restrictions that limit sales largely to Christian areas in Damascus, Syria, Sunday, March 22, 2026.(AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/86194bb/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/599x399!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F78%2F5b%2Fb1e201e65dbf33ce1010ab99db61%2F90532fec022f475eafc3b7408319fd2c)](https://apnews.com/article/syria-alsharaa-alcohol-ban-christians-ed5f71c33b444b6be791644a915da9a7) 3 MIN READ Initially upon coming to office, Assad freed political prisoners and allowed more open discourse. In the “Damascus Spring,” salons for intellectuals emerged where Syrians could discuss art, culture and politics to a degree impossible under his father. But after 1,000 intellectuals signed a public petition calling for multiparty democracy and greater freedoms in 2001, and others tried to form a political party, the salons were snuffed out by the feared secret police, who jailed dozens of activists. ## Tested by the Arab Spring, Assad relied on old alliances to stay in power Instead of a political opening, Assad turned to economic reforms. He slowly lifted economic restrictions, let in foreign banks, threw the doors open to imports and empowered the private sector. Damascus and other cities long mired in drabness saw a flourishing of shopping malls, new restaurants and consumer goods. Tourism swelled. Abroad, he stuck to the line his father had set, based on the alliance with Iran and a policy of insisting on a full return of the Israel-annexed Golan Heights, although in practice Assad never militarily confronted Israel. In 2005, he suffered a heavy blow with the loss of Syria’s decades-old control over neighboring Lebanon after the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. With many Lebanese accusing Damascus of being behind the slaying, Syria was forced to withdraw its troops from the country and a pro-American government came to power. ![FILE - Bashar Assad, second right, is seen during the closing session of the ruling Baath party congress in Damascus, Syria, June 20, 2000. (SANA via AP, File)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/8c46275/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2000x1544+0+0/resize/599x462!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2Fba%2F36%2Fb2629d23f3ccdee5e15d3c667cd7%2F08c64ec1a9114e66944df73306014780) Bashar Assad, second right, is seen during the closing session of the ruling Baath party congress in Damascus, Syria, June 20, 2000. (SANA via AP, File) ![FILE - Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, left, and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad sign documents during a meeting in Damascus, Syria, March 7, 2005. (AP Photo, File)](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/f01ce14/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1928x1365+0+0/resize/599x424!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2F83%2F1a%2F88ce5b1457eb81361dfc50be3e08%2F3ff62c5d5f9347f99ae4655a325372f4) Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, left, and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad sign documents during a meeting in Damascus, Syria, March 7, 2005. (AP Photo, File) At the same time, the Arab world split into two camps — one of U.S.-allied, Sunni-led countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt, the other of Syria and Shiite-led Iran with their ties to Hezbollah and Palestinian militants. Throughout, Assad relied largely on the same power base at home as his father: his Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam comprising around 10% of the population. Many of the positions in his government went to younger generations of the same families that had worked for his father. Drawn in as well were members of the new middle class created by his reforms, including prominent Sunni merchant families. Assad also turned to his own family. His younger brother Maher headed the elite Presidential Guard and would lead the crackdown against the uprising. Their sister Bushra was a strong voice in his inner circle, along with her husband, Deputy Defense Minister Assef Shawkat, until he was killed in a 2012 bombing. Bashar’s cousin, Rami Makhlouf, became the country’s biggest businessman, heading a financial empire before the two had a falling-out that led to Makhlouf being [pushed aside.](https://apnews.com/international-news-general-news-d403bdc40371d890d368acfc473483bf) Assad also increasingly entrusted key roles to his wife, Asma, before she announced in May that she was undergoing [treatment for leukemia](https://apnews.com/article/asma-assad-leukemia-syria-cancer-diagnosis-bashar-b58128fa973ebf2045afab9764a940c8) and stepped out of the limelight. When 2011 protests erupted in Tunisia and Egypt, eventually toppling their rulers, Assad dismissed the possibility of the same occurring in Syria, insisting his regime was more in tune with its people. After the Arab Spring wave reached Syria, his security forces staged a brutal crackdown while Assad consistently denied he faced a popular revolt. He instead blamed “foreign-backed terrorists” trying to destabilize his regime. His rhetoric struck a chord with many in Syria’s minority groups — including Christians, Druze and Shiites — as well as some Sunnis who feared the prospect of rule by Sunni extremists even more than they disliked Assad’s authoritarian rule. As the uprising spiraled into a civil war, millions of Syrians fled to Jordan, Turkey, Iraq and Lebanon and on to Europe. Ironically, on Feb. 26, 2011, two days after the fall of Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak to protesters and just days before the wave of Arab Spring protests swept into his country, Assad emailed a joke he had seen mocking the Egyptian leader’s stubborn refusal to step down.

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