'My departure from Syria was not planned': Bashar Al-Assad claims
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Moscow: Former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad in his first statement on Monday since leaving the country denied a ‘planned’ departure.
Bashar al-Assad fled the country that his family ruled for nearly five decades to Russia when rebels led by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) captured capital Damascus on December 8.
When rebels surged through the streets of Damascus, Bashar al-Assad’s military took flight from the scene leaving behind tanks and other equipment.
In a statement from Russia, where President Vladimir Putin granted him asylum, Assad called the country's new leaders ‘terrorists’.
The 59-year-old claimed that he had been carrying out his duties in Damascus until the early hours of December 8 when rebels overran the place.
His statement published on the Syrian presidency's Telegram channel said ‘My departure from Syria was neither planned nor did it occur during the final hours of the battles’.
Assad said that he had never considered stepping down or seeking refuge during commotion of the events.
When ‘terrorist forces infiltrated’ Damascus, he claimed to have moved to Russian naval base in Latakia and worked with the help of ‘Russian allies to oversee combat operations’.
Russia being his closest friend previously helped him during the 2011 Syrian civil war.
Arriving at the Russian airbase of Hmeimim that morning, he understood that ‘our forces had completely withdrawn from all battle lines and that the last army positions had fallen’.
He stated further that ‘With no viable means of leaving the base, Moscow requested that the base's command arrange an immediate evacuation to Russia on the evening of December 8. This took place a day after the fall of Damascus, following the collapse of the final military positions and the resulting paralysis of all remaining state institutions.’
Reports said that Assad had kept his relatives, officials and aides in the dark about his plans to flee Syria.
It is also reported that he is unapologetic about the excesses during his years in power, claiming that he was the ‘custodian’ of a national project backed by Syrians.
Source: NDTV