'The barbaric state has fallen': The world reacts to Syrian revolution
By ITV News Producer Hannah Ward-Glenton
Syria's government has fallen and its president has fled after opposition fighters entered Damascus.
Crowds of Syrians have gathered to celebrate in the central squares in the capital, chanting anti-Assad slogans and honking car horns. In some areas, celebratory gunshots were heard.
While rebel action will have an enormous impact on those living in Syria, the ramifications will ricochet around both the country's geographical neighbours and nations further afield.
So what has been the response to the the rebel action?
United Kingdom
Sir Keir Starmer called for all sides to protect civilians and ensure aid can reach the vulnerable as he responded to the overthrow of the Syrian regime.
The Prime Minister said: “The developments in Syria in recent hours and days are unprecedented, and we are speaking to our partners in the region and monitoring the situation closely.
“The Syrian people have suffered under Assad’s barbaric regime for too long and we welcome his departure.
“Our focus is now on ensuring a political solution prevails, and peace and stability is restored.
“We call on all sides to protect civilians and minorities, and ensure essential aid can reach the most vulnerable in the coming hours and days.”
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Meanwhile in Manchester crowds of people with Syrian flags have gathered to celebrate the collapse of the Syrian government.
Groups of Syrians have also taken to the streets in Germany, Cyprus, Turkey and Sweden following the fall of the Assad regime.
United States
President-Elect Donald Trump was one of the first to publicly comment on what was happening in Syria on Saturday evening, and was quick to say that the United States should not get involved.
"Syria is a mess, but is not our friend, & THE UNITED STATES SHOULD HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. THIS IS NOT OUR FIGHT. LET IT PLAY OUT. DO NOT GET INVOLVED!" Trump wrote on social media platforms.
American military presence will continue in eastern Syria.
Daniel B. Shapiro, a deputy assistant secretary of defence for the Middle East, said the US presence was “solely to ensure the enduring defeat of ISIS and has nothing to do with other aspects of this conflict,” he said, using an acronym for the Islamic State group.
President Joe Biden said from the White House on Sunday: “At long last the Assad regime has fallen.
"This regime brutalized and tortured and killed literally hundreds of thousands of innocent Syrians.
"The fall of the regime is a fundamental act of justice. It’s a moment of historic opportunity for the long-suffering people of Syria to build a better future for their proud country.”
Russia
The Kremlin said Assad and his family arrived in Moscow, where they have been granted asylum.
Russia’s foreign ministry said that Bashar Assad left Syria after negotiations with rebel groups, and that he gave “instructions” to “transfer power peacefully”.
Writing on the Telegram messaging app on Sunday, the ministry said Moscow had not directly participated in these talks. It also said it has been following the “dramatic events” in Syria “with extreme concern".
Russian troops stationed in Syria had put on high alert and but the ministry said there was “no serious threat” to the security of Russia’s military bases there.
Russia has waged a military campaign in Syria since September 2015, teaming up with Iran to allow Assad’s government to fight armed opposition groups and reclaim control over most of the country.
While Russia now concentrates the bulk of its military resources in Ukraine, it has maintained a military foothold in Syria and keeps troops at its bases there.
China
China has said it is closely monitoring the situation in Syria and that it hoped stability would return as soon as possible, according to a statement published on Sunday on the foreign ministry’s website.
Beijing said it has been helping Chinese nationals who wish to leave Syria to do so in a safe manner and that it remained in contact with those still in the country.
“We urge relevant parties in Syria to ensure the safety and security of the Chinese institutions and personnel in Syria,” the statement read. “The Chinese Embassy is still up and running and carrying out its duty in Syria. We will continue to make every possible assistance to Chinese nationals in need.”
Iran
Iran, which strongly supposed President Bashar al-Assad, has said Syrians should decide their own country's future “without destructive, coercive, foreign intervention".
The statement from the foreign ministry on Sunday was the country’s first official reaction to the overthrow of Assad’s government by rebel forces.
Iran has been a staunch supporter of Assad throughout the nearly 14-year civil war.
Israel
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israeli forces have seized a buffer zone in the Golan Heights, which was established by a 1974 ceasefire agreement with Syria.
Speaking on Sunday, Netanyahu said the decades-old agreement had collapsed and that Syrian troops had abandoned their positions, necessitating the Israeli takeover.
Israel captured the Golan Heights in the 1967 Mideast war and annexed it. The international community, except for the United States, views it as occupied Syrian territory.
Europe
French President Emmanuel Macron responded to the news from Syria by writing: "The barbaric state has fallen. At last." in a post on X.
"I pay tribute to the Syrian people, to their courage, to their patience. In this moment of uncertainty, I send them my wishes for peace, freedom, and unity," Macron added.
The German Chancellor Olaf Scholz described the end of the Assad regime as "good news" in a post on X.
He added that law and order now needed to be reinstated, and that all religious minorities should be protected.
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