Assad says he stayed in Damascus and carried out his duties until the early hours of the morning.
Deposed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said in his first statement since the fall of his regime that his departure from Damascus on the day it was occupied by anti-government rebels was not planned. TASR informs about it based on the AFP report.
“My departure from Syria was not planned and did not take place during the last hours of the fighting, as some claim. On the contrary, I remained in Damascus and performed my duties until the morning hours of Sunday, December 8,” Assad said in a video posted on the Telegram platform on Monday.
According to Assad, Moscow demanded his immediate evacuation to Russia
According to the Lebanese website L’Orient-Le Jour, Assad added that his immediate evacuation to Russia on the evening of Sunday, December 8 “was demanded by Moscow”.
“When terrorist forces penetrated Damascus, in coordination with our Russian allies, I moved to Laziya to oversee combat operations,” Assad claimed, adding that he left for Russia on the evening of December 8. He also added that Syria is now ” in the hands of terrorists”.
Islamist insurgents launched their surprise offensive against Bashar al-Assad’s regime in late November. In quick succession, they occupied large cities such as Aleppo, Dayr al-Zaur, Hama and Homs. On the night of December 8, they also entered the capital, Damascus.
Assad and his family are currently in Russia. This granted them asylum on humanitarian grounds.
