https://en.sputniknews.africa/20241208/syrian-prime-minister-declares-new-era-for-country-1069601460.html
Syrian Prime Minister Declares New Era for Country as Militants Take Over Damascus
Syrian Prime Minister Declares New Era for Country as Militants Take Over Damascus
Sputnik Africa
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - On Sunday at dawn, the armed opposition said they had stormed the Saydnaya prison in the suburbs of Damascus and were able to free... 08.12.2024, Sputnik Africa
2024-12-08T08:32+0100
2024-12-08T08:32+0100
2024-12-12T09:09+0100
syria
damascus
russia
middle east
international
opposition
airport
military
conflict
bashar assad
https://cdn1.img.sputniknews.africa/img/07e8/0c/08/1069600323_0:0:3072:1728_1920x0_80_0_0_421ba2c6b922761d9ea6489e111dd922.jpg
Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi al-Jalali announced on Sunday that a new era was beginning in the history of Syria and that he had established a contact with militants.He added that he had contacted the leaders of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham* terrorist group (formerly known as the Nusra Front), which had entered Damascus, and that the militants promised that there will be no repressions.Al-Jalali also said that he and 18 other ministers had made the principled decision to remain in Damascus and not leave the country.The prime minister said on Sunday that he was unaware of the whereabouts of the country's president and defense minister.At the same time, Syrian Communications Minister Iyad Mohammad al-Khatib told the broadcaster that members of the Syrian cabinet remaining in Damascus were uncertain about the whereabouts of Foreign Minister Bassam Sabbagh.The militants who seized Damascus guaranteed the safety of the remaining cabinet members, al-Khatib said.Russia's military presence in Syria will be determined by new authorities, al-Jalali said.The prime minister also called the current situation in Syria's defense ministry "unclear."Situation in DamascusEarlier in the day, sounds of intense gunfight are heard in the government quarter of Damascus, eyewitnesses told Sputnik. "Intensive shooting is heard in the Abu Rummaneh and Al Mazzeh area. There is no understanding where the terrorists are," a source told the agency.In addition, Damascus International Airport has stopped working after all employees left their workplaces, Syrian radio Sham FM reported.Moreover, Al Jazeera reported, citing sources, that the Syrian government army was withdrawing its forces from the center of the capital Damascus, and the central television buildings are allegedly occupied by outsiders.According to the broadcaster, outsiders, allegedly "opposition forces", are in the building of the central Syrian television in Damascus, and their supporters are meanwhile gathering in the central Umayyad Square of the Syrian capital.Flightradar24 flight tracker reported that an Il-76 plane belonging to the Syrian Air airline appeared on radars in the Damascus area at 2.00 a.m. local time on Sunday (23:00 GMT on Saturday) and disappeared 40 minutes later near the city of Homs. Its whereabouts are not known.The plane disappeared when it was 495 meters (1,624 ft) above the sea level. Its speed was exceptionally low, about 100 kilometers per hour (62 miles per hour), at which a plane of this type cannot fly, the service said.Media reported on Saturday that Syrian President Bashar Assad had left the country, but the Syrian presidential office dismissed these allegations as false.Arab media posted videos online showing a crowd dismantling the statue of Hafez Assad, a former Syrian president and Bashad Assad's father, in a central square in Damascus. People are seen walking freely around the presidential palace, taking photos and trying to remove paintings from the walls, with no security present. Militant groups were also filmed in the Kafar Sousah area in the southwest of the city.* a terrorist group banned in Russia and many other countries
https://en.sputniknews.africa/20241207/1069596922.html
syria
damascus
russia
middle east
Sputnik Africa
feedback@sputniknews.com
+74956456601
MIA „Rossiya Segodnya“
2024
Sputnik Africa
feedback@sputniknews.com
+74956456601
MIA „Rossiya Segodnya“
News
en_EN
Sputnik Africa
feedback@sputniknews.com
+74956456601
MIA „Rossiya Segodnya“
Sputnik Africa
feedback@sputniknews.com
+74956456601
MIA „Rossiya Segodnya“
syria, damascus, russia, middle east, international, opposition, airport, military, conflict, bashar assad, terrorist attack
syria, damascus, russia, middle east, international, opposition, airport, military, conflict, bashar assad, terrorist attack
Syrian Prime Minister Declares New Era for Country as Militants Take Over Damascus
08:32 08.12.2024 (Updated: 09:09 12.12.2024) MOSCOW (Sputnik) - On Sunday at dawn, the armed opposition said they had stormed the Saydnaya prison in the suburbs of Damascus and were able to free prisoners, the Al Jazeera broadcaster reported.
Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi al-Jalali announced on Sunday that a new era was beginning in the history of
Syria and that he had established a contact with militants.
"A new era is beginning in the history of Syria. We hope that an era of pluralism is coming." the prime minister said in in a phone call to Al Arabiya broadcaster.
He added that he had contacted the leaders of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham* terrorist group (formerly known as the Nusra Front), which had
entered Damascus, and that the militants promised that there will be no repressions.
Al-Jalali also said that he and 18 other ministers had made the principled decision to remain in Damascus and not leave the country.
The prime minister said on Sunday that he was unaware of the whereabouts of the country's president and defense minister.
"I have no information about the whereabouts of President Bashar al-Assad and Defense Minister Ali Abbas," al-Jalali said in a phone call.
At the same time, Syrian Communications Minister Iyad Mohammad al-Khatib told the broadcaster that members of the Syrian cabinet remaining in Damascus were uncertain about the whereabouts of Foreign Minister Bassam Sabbagh.
The militants who seized Damascus guaranteed the safety of the remaining cabinet members, al-Khatib said.
Russia's military presence in Syria will be determined by new authorities, al-Jalali said.
"This issue [of Russian military presence] is not within my competence. It will be decided by the new authorities in the coming period," al-Jalali told Al Arabiya broadcaster.
The prime minister also called the current situation in Syria's defense ministry "unclear."
Earlier in the day, sounds of intense gunfight are heard in the government quarter of Damascus, eyewitnesses told Sputnik. "Intensive shooting is heard in the Abu Rummaneh and Al Mazzeh area. There is no understanding
where the terrorists are," a source told the agency.
In addition, Damascus International Airport has stopped working after all employees left their workplaces, Syrian radio Sham FM reported.
Moreover, Al Jazeera reported, citing sources, that the Syrian government army was withdrawing its forces from the center of the capital Damascus, and the central television buildings are allegedly occupied by outsiders.
According to the broadcaster, outsiders, allegedly "opposition forces", are in the building of the central Syrian television in Damascus, and their supporters are meanwhile gathering in the central Umayyad Square of the Syrian capital.
Flightradar24 flight tracker reported that an Il-76 plane belonging to the Syrian Air airline appeared on radars in the Damascus area at 2.00 a.m. local time on Sunday (23:00 GMT on Saturday) and disappeared 40 minutes later near the city of Homs. Its whereabouts are not known.
The plane disappeared when it was 495 meters (1,624 ft) above the sea level. Its speed was exceptionally low, about 100 kilometers per hour (62 miles per hour), at which a plane of this type cannot fly, the service said.
Media reported on Saturday that Syrian President Bashar Assad had left the country, but the Syrian presidential office dismissed these allegations as false.
Arab media posted videos online showing a crowd dismantling the statue of Hafez Assad, a former Syrian president and Bashad Assad's father, in a central square in Damascus. People are seen walking freely around the presidential palace, taking photos and trying to remove paintings from the walls, with no security present. Militant groups were also filmed in the Kafar Sousah area in the southwest of the city.
* a terrorist group banned in Russia and many other countries
