Dec 08, 2024, 11:05 AM EST
Biden to meet with national security team on Syria
President Joe Biden will meet with his national security team on Sunday to get an update on the situation in Syria, the White House said.
-ABC News' Lauren Peller
Syria's Assad is now in Moscow, Russian state media says
The Syrian government collapsed after a surprise rebel offensive.
Last Updated: December 9, 2024, 4:23 AM EST
Rebel forces in Syria captured the capital Damascus and toppled the regime of President Bashar al-Assad in a lightning-quick advance across the country.
As Assad resigned and fled Syria, rebel forces moved into Damascus as citizens celebrated there and in the streets of Aleppo, where the rebel offensive began 11 days ago.
Meanwhile, the ceasefire in Lebanon is holding despite ongoing Israeli airstrikes on Hezbollah targets, which Israeli officials say are responses to ceasefire violations by the Iranian-backed militant group.
The Israel Defense Forces continued its intense airstrike and ground campaigns in Gaza, particularly in the north of the devastated Palestinian territory.
Tensions also remain high between Israel and Iran after tit-for-tat long-range strikes in recent months and threats of further military action from both sides.
Latest headlines:
- Dec 08, 2024, 4:47 PM EST
- Dec 08, 2024, 3:27 PM EST
- Dec 08, 2024, 1:52 PM EST
- Dec 08, 2024, 1:01 PM EST
- Dec 08, 2024, 11:23 AM EST
Here's how the news is developing.
Dec 08, 2024, 9:57 AM EST
Netanyahu calls Syria regime change 'historic day' for the Middle East
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu weighed in Sunday on the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, calling it a "historic day" in the Middle East.
Netanyahu said that due to Syrian troops abandoning their positions in the buffer zone between Israel and Syria, the Israel Defense Forces has seized those positions.
Kobi Gideon/Israel Gpo/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock
"We will not allow any hostile force to establish itself on our border," Netanyahu said.
Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz on Sunday visited Mount Bental in the Golan Heights, an observation point toward the Syrian border.
"This is a historic day in the history of the Middle East," Netanyahu said. "The Assad regime is a central link in Iran's axis of evil -- this regime has fallen."
Netanyahu claimed the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was a "direct result" of the blows Israel has inflicted on the main supporters of his regime, Iran and Hezbollah.
"This has created a chain reaction throughout the Middle East of all those who want to be free from this oppressive and tyrannical regime," Netanyahu said.
-ABC News' Victoria Beaule
Dec 08, 2024, 8:47 AM EST
Celebrations erupt in Syria in the wake of Assad regime's fall
Syrians poured into the streets of Aleppo on Sunday, celebrating the fall of President Bashar al-Assad in a surprise rebel offensive that started 11 days ago.
Aref Tammawi/AFP via Getty Images
"An indescribable feeling, without injustice and forbidden things. Things that were forbidden to us only," Aleppo resident Alaa Mayo told ABC News. "We had war, beatings, imprisonment... And our rights, we won't obtain them like the rest of the world."
Hasan Belal/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
In Damascus, celebratory gunfire accompanied celebrations since the rebels' overnight takeover of the Syrian capital city. Video showed citizens celebrating in Damascus' Umayyad Square.
ABC News' Camilla Alcini
Dec 08, 2024, 7:17 AM EST
US mission in Syria 'unchanged,' Pentagon says
Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder said Sunday that the U.S. is monitoring the evolving situation in Syria, where rebel forces have seized Damascus and President Bashar al-Assad's government has collapsed.
Orhan Qereman/Reuters
"The mission of U.S. forces remains unchanged and focused on the 'Defeat-ISIS' mission," Ryder said. "As always, we maintain the inherent right of self-defense and will take necessary steps to protect our service members deployed to the region."
There are around 900 U.S. troops deployed in eastern and northeastern Syria.
-ABC News' Cindy Smith
