Rebel forces in Syria ousted long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad as government forces withdraw, with what is said to be the end of the Assad family in a war-torn nation. There are also reports, that Bashar Assad has been killed in a plane crash during his flee from the country.
Bashar al-Assad became president in 2000, and he continued his authoritarian rule with violence and controversies. He is the son of Hafez al-Assad, who took power in 1970 after a military coup and ruled the Arab nation for nearly 30 years.
Assad grew up in the shadow of his father’s autocratic regime, which elevated the Alawite minority to key political, military, and social positions. Bashar Assad studied medicine in London but things changed after the tragic death of his brother in a car crash.
After his father’s demise in 2000, Bashar was elected president in an unopposed election with tweak in constitution for presidential age limit. The leader known for progressive thoughts was named to modernize the country.
He however advanced the tyrannical rule of his late father, and maintained an oppressive stance, aligning with militant groups like Hamas and Hezbollah and rejecting calls for democratic change.
A few decades after his rule, Syria saw Arab Spring as protests erupted calling for political change but were met with brutal force. The government responded with widespread violence, killing and arresting thousands of demonstrators in the early months.
Instead of talks, Assad opted to silence the opposition, leading to the eruption of a full-scale civil war. The war has been marked by atrocities, including widespread human rights violations, the use of chemical weapons on civilians, and indiscriminate bombings of rebel-held areas.
His government continues war crimes in the country with the help of key allies like the Kremlin and Tehran. The war however devastated Syria, leaving hundreds of thousands dead and millions displaced.
In Later years, Daesh took control of parts of the country, further complicating the already chaotic situation. Assad refused to join a US-led coalition against ISIS, instead warning that supporting rebel forces would result in attacks against the West.
Amid growing opposition and a deepening economic crisis, Assad’s grip weakened. The former president shaped Syria into a battlefield of geopolitical and ideological conflicts.
