With Bashar al-Assad’s regime crumbling, Mohammed al-Bashir, head of the Syrian Salvation Government in Idlib, has been appointed to lead the country’s new transitional government. The move follows urgent talks between rebel commander Ahmed al-Sharaa, Prime Minister Mohammed Jalali, and Vice President Faisal Mekdad.
In Damascus, the streets are alive with celebrations as Syrians, both rebels and residents, cheer the regime’s fall. But the excitement is mixed with lawlessness, as some have seized the opportunity to loot, even storming the central bank.
Prisoners are being freed by the thousands. Disturbing footage has captured the release of detainees from the infamous Sednaya prison, where over 30,000 people are believed to have been executed in recent years.
The United Nations Security Council is now poised for closed-door talks on Syria’s future, after Russia called for an emergency session.
Meanwhile, Israel has moved to control the Golan Heights, bombing chemical weapons stockpiles out of fear of an extremist takeover. The move has sparked sharp condemnation from Jordan, Qatar, and Egypt, who have called it a breach of international law, citing Israel’s occupation of Syrian-controlled territory in the UN-patrolled buffer zone.
