How Syrian rebels overthrew the Assad regime in just over a week
Seizing military bases, toppling regime statues, freeing prisoners and capturing major cities – this is just a fraction of what Syrian rebel forces have achieved in just over a week.
Sky News has tracked the shock offensive that has ousted President Bashar al Assad, using over 60 geolocated videos that show how they advanced through major cities and captured the capital Damascus.
While Assad, who has now left the country, had earlier vowed to “crush” the offensive, visual evidence shows how quickly his regime has fallen.
This is how the offensive unfolded.
Until just over a week ago, Assad’s Russian-backed forces controlled much of Syria.
Now the opposition groups – led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS) – a former al Qaeda affiliate previously known as the Nusra Front – have captured three of Syria’s major cities including its capital and ousted the regime.
The fall of Aleppo
Rebels began the surprise offensive from the northern province of Idlib before attacking areas to the north and northwest of Aleppo, Syria’s second largest city which has been under Assad’s control since 2016.
In the space of just three days, rebels pushed out government forces. Footage from 29 November shows lines of students evacuating from the University of Aleppo as opposition forces closed in.
Later that day, just two kilometres south of the university, HTS members filmed themselves at a statue of Assad’s deceased brother, taking down the regime flag.
The next day, Syria’s military announced a withdrawal from the city – Aleppo fell to the rebels.
Assad forces attempted defence
After defeat in Aleppo, Assad’s forces attempted to defend other cities and towns. They headed to Hama, a city 120km south of Aleppo – where geolocated videos posted on 30 November show a line of tanks as Assad’s forces awaited the rebels.
These are among the few videos which show efforts by regime forces during the offensive.
On 2 December, Russian and Syrian jets struck the rebel-held city of Idlib in the north, which for years had been the last anti-regime stronghold in Syria.
Videos show the aftermath of a deadly attack near Idlib University Hospital; the strikes that day killed at least 25 people.
Rebels move to Hama
Next, the rebels moved towards Hama city, 120km south of Aleppo. We verified footage taken on 3 December showing opposition forces in Al Amqiyah and Halfaya, a village and a town in the Hama governorate.
On 4 December, the rebels posted videos of a military base they’d seized in the Hama province signalling that they were not only able to take large cities, but also to seize key military sites. Taken from inside a vehicle, the footage shows the empty base – with regime forces nowhere to be seen.
The next day, on 5 December, rebels captured Hama city – the provincial capital – as the military withdrew its troops marking the seizure of a second major city and a significant setback for the regime.
Footage posted by rebels on 5 December shows prisoners being freed from the notorious Hama prison, as family members and friends hugged each other as they were reunited.
Rebels capture Homs
With Aleppo and Hama now under rebel-control, opposition forces made their way to Homs a city in western Syria – under 50km south of Hama and around 150km south of Aleppo.
Homs sits on a major crossroad, linking Damascus to the north and Syria’s Mediterranean coast provinces of Latakia and Tartus, where the majority back Mr Assad and home to a Russian naval base and air base.
On the evening of 5 December, videos emerged of hundreds of people attempting to flee Homs as the rebels drew closer. Footage shows long queues of cars stuck in traffic as people tried to leave the city and head west.
The next day, the rebels are seen in a number of villages within a 10km radius of Homs. We geolocated footage of anti-Assad convoys advancing through the towns of Talbiseh and Ter Maela and greeted by civilians – showing just how close they were to the major city.
While the world’s attention was mostly focused on rebel advances heading south from Aleppo and Hama, the regime’s hold over territory in the east and south of the country was also deteriorating.
By 6 December, we geolocated footage that showed the rebels had taken Deir el-Zor, a major city on the eastern fringes of the regime’s territory. The same day, several locations were captured in Daraa Governate, putting new pressure on Damascus from the south.
Then, the next day, on 7 December, the rebels declared they’d captured Homs.
Regime’s last stand
Finally, the opposition forces moved around 130km south to Damascus – home to the presidential palace.
From here little resistance against the rebels was seen. Videos from 8 December show Syrians walking inside the Muhajireen Presidential Palace while other videos show posters of Assad being ripped from a hospital.
Celebrations have continued on the streets of the city as other videos show people leaving Damascus’s ministry of finance with bags.
Russia, one of Assad’s key allies, said the Syrian president has left office and Syria after giving orders for there to be a peaceful transfer of power.
Mr Assad has since arrived in Moscow with his family, a Kremlin source told Russia’s state-run TASS news agency.
While many did not anticipate the scale and speed of the rebel offensive in Syria and many questions remain over the political future of the country, this offensive marks the end of a 54-year Assad rule in Syria.
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Explosives and weapons seized – with 71 arrests – as Syria launches clampdown on Islamic State cells
Syria has carried out pre-emptive operations targeting Islamic State cells – arresting 71 people during 61 raids.
Explosives and weapons were seized, with the interior ministry revealing they were working on “precise” intelligence information.
“Many” of those detained were wanted criminals, with forces obtaining evidence that linked them to terrorist activities.
A statement added that the operation was part of “ongoing national efforts to combat terrorism and confront plots targeting the country’s security and citizens”.
The raids come as Syrian President Ahmed al Sharaa travels to Washington for a meeting with Donald Trump, where he will join a coalition against IS.
Meanwhile, the US is preparing to establish a military presence in Damascus to enable a security pact that is being brokered between Syria and Israel.
According to the Syrian Arab News Agency, officials intercepted information that suggested Islamic State was planning to launch new attacks.
Interior ministry spokesman Nour al Din al Baba told al Ekhbariya: “The current major threat lies in IS’ attempts to reconstitute itself and recruit new members, particularly among the youth.”
Former president Bashar al Assad was ousted late last year after 25 years in power and fled to Russia after his regime came to an end.
Since then, al Sharaa’s transitional administration has been attempting to restore security, introduce economic reforms, and cooperate with international partners.
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On Friday, the UK and US removed sanctions against al Sharaa – following in the footsteps of the UN Security Council.
The State Department said this was “in recognition of the progress demonstrated by the Syrian leadership”, including work to counter narcotics and eliminate chemical weapons.
Al Sharaa had faced a travel ban, asset freeze and an arms embargo for well over a decade because he was previously affiliated with al Qaeda.
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Israel receives hostage’s remains – as Turkey issues arrest warrants for 36 officials involved in the war
Israeli troops in Gaza have received the remains of another hostage.
They have now been taken to the National Institute for Forensic Medicine to be examined.
If it is confirmed that they belong to a hostage, this would mean there are five bodies left to be returned under the terms of a ceasefire that began on 10 October.
Israel has also released the bodies of 285 Palestinians – but this identification process is harder because DNA labs are not allowed in Gaza.
Last night’s transfer is a sign of progress in the fragile truce, but some of the remains handed over in recent weeks have not belonged to any of the missing hostages.
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At times, Israel has accused Hamas of violating the agreement – however, US President Donald Trump has previously acknowledged conditions on the ground in Gaza are difficult.
Meanwhile, UN officials have warned the levels of humanitarian aid flowing into the territory fall well short of what Palestinians require.
Deputy spokesperson Farhan Haqq said more than 200,000 metric tons of aid is positioned to move in – but only 37,000 tons has arrived so far.
Earlier on Friday, hundreds of mourners attended the military funeral of an Israeli-American soldier whose body was returned on Sunday.
Omer Neutra was an Israeli-American soldier. Pic: AP
Captain Omer Neutra was 21 when he was killed by Hamas militants who then took his body into Gaza following the October 7th attacks.
Admiral Brad Cooper, who heads up US Central Command, said during the service: “He is the son of two nations.
“He embodied the best of both the United States and Israel. Uniquely, he has firmly cemented his place in history as the hero of two countries.”
His mother Orna addressed her son’s coffin – and said: “We are all left with the vast space between who you were to us and to the world in your life and what you were yet to become. And with the mission to fill that gap with the light and goodness that you are.”
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IDF troops carry the coffin of hostage Omer Neutra. Pic: AP
In other developments, Turkish prosecutors have issued arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and 36 other Israeli officials on charges of carrying out “genocide” in Gaza.
They have been accused of crimes against humanity – but the move is highly symbolic since these officials were unlikely to enter Turkey.
Foreign minister Gideon Saar dismissed the warrants, and said: “Israel firmly rejects, with contempt, the latest PR stunt by the tyrant Erdogan.”
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Putin’s right-hand man made him look weak – it may have cost him his seat at Kremlin’s top table
In Soviet times, Western observers would scrutinise video footage of state occasions, like military parades on Red Square, to try to learn more about Kremlin hierarchy.
Who was positioned closest to the leader? What did the body language say? Which officials were in and out of favour?
In some ways, not much has changed.
The footage present-day Kremlinologists are currently pouring over is from Wednesday’s landmark meeting of Russia’s Security Council, in which Vladimir Putin told his top officials to start drafting proposals for a possible nuclear weapons test.
It was an important moment. Not one you’d expect a trusted lieutenant to miss. But Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s veteran foreign minister, was conspicuously absent – the only permanent member of the Council not present.
According to the Russian business daily, Kommersant, his absence was “coordinated”.
US President Donald Trump meets with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin in Alaska. Pic: AP
Sergey Lavrov and Marco Rubio in Alaska. Pic: AP
That episode alone would have been enough to raise eyebrows.
But coupled with the selection of a more junior official to lead the Russian delegation at the upcoming G20 summit (a role Lavrov has filled in recent years) – well, that’s when questions get asked, namely: Has Moscow’s top diplomat been sidelined?
The question has grown loud enough to force the Kremlin into a denial, but it’s done little to quell speculation that Lavrov has fallen out of favour.
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov. File pic: Reuters
Rumours of a rift have been mounting since Donald Trump called off a planned summit with Putin in Budapest last month, following a phone call between Lavrov and US secretary of state Marco Rubio.
According to the Financial Times, it was Lavrov’s uncompromising stance that prompted the White House to put the summit on ice.
Conversations I had with diplomatic sources here at the time revealed a belief that Lavrov had either dropped the ball or gone off-script. Whether it was by accident or by design, his diplomacy (or lack of it) torpedoed the summit and seemingly set back a US-Russia rapprochement.
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That would’ve angered Putin, who is keen to engage with Washington, not only on Ukraine but on other issues, like nuclear arms control.
More importantly, perhaps, it made the Russian president appear weak – unable to control his foreign minister. And Putin is not a man who likes to be undermined.
Football fans will be familiar with Sir Alex Ferguson’s golden rule of management: Never let a player grow bigger than the club. Putin operates in a similar fashion. Loyalty is valued extremely highly.
Lavrov meets with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif in 2015. Pic: Reuters
North Korea’s Kim Jong Un and Lavrov meet in Pyongyang in 2023. Pic: AP
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If Lavrov has indeed been sidelined, it would be a very significant moment indeed. The 75-year-old has been the face of Russian diplomacy for more than two decades and effectively Putin’s right-hand man for most of the Kremlin leader’s rule.
Known for his abrasive style and acerbic putdowns, Lavrov has also been a vociferous cheerleader for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
At the Putin-Trump summit in Alaska, he arrived wearing a jumper emblazoned with the initials “CCCP”, the Russian letters for USSR. The apparent message: Ukraine still belongs to Moscow.
And in the melee that immediately followed the presidents’ press statements at the summit, I remember racing over to Lavrov as he was leaving and yelling a question to him through the line of security guards.
He didn’t even turn. Instead, he just shouted back: “Who are you?”
It was typical of a diplomatic heavyweight, who’s known for not pulling his punches. But has that uncompromising approach finally taken its toll?
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