Bashar Al-Assad granted asylum in Russia

Former Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad and his family have been granted asylum in Russia.

On Sunday evening, as Syrians celebrated the fall of the Assad regime, Russian state TV reported that Assad and his family had arrived in Moscow.

Assad's escape from Damascus comes after rebels rapidly seized control of the country with little to no resistance from the Syrian army. On Sunday, Damascus erupted in celebrations, as Syrians welcomed the end of the Assad family's rule of the country, a goal that they missed during the Arab Spring, as Assad was the only dictator that survived that period.

Reacting to the government's collapse, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stated that the EU will assist Syrians in safeguarding national unity, while building a country that protects its minorities.

Fears of another phase of violence and unrest similar to the fate of Libya after its dictatorship fell are still present in Syria. Abu Mohammad al-Jawlani, the leader of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) is being projected as a potential leader despite his troubled past. 

The HTS's own history also raised eyebrows, with many noting that the organisation has enforced Islamist rule in the Syrian region it controlled, while further questions on whether different rebel factions could cooperate are also cropping up.