this is bbc news. syrian rebels declare damascus is free as the assad family's more than 50—year regime comes to an end. the bbc is in damascus as we came into the city we saw military equipment beside the road, abandoned. tanks, military vehicles, even soldiers took off their uniforms and just joined the population. rebels appear on state tv saying they've toppled a tyrant and have released his prisoners. russia says assad has left the country as his palace is looted. syria's prime minister says he will �*cooperate�* with the rebels over a transition of power. and prime minister netanyahu orders the israeli military to "seize" a un buffer zone in the golan heights, on the israeli syrian border.

more than five decades of authoritarian rule by the assad family have come to an end in syria, after rebels took the capital, damascus, overnight. speaking on state television they said "the city of damascus has been liberated. assad has been toppled." the group hayat tahrir al—sham, who have their roots in al-qaeda, have been trying to rebrand themselves as a nationalist force. they say they've freed what they called hundreds of unjustly detained prisoners held injails in syria. the russian foreign ministry said president assad stepped down and left syria as a result of negotiations with "other participants in the armed conflict" but that russia was not involved in those negotiations and does not know where he is now.

russia has been a long time back of assad. russia has been a long time back of assad. there were scenes of celebration on the steps of the presidential palace in damascus, within its walls, people can be seen picking through rooms and corridors apparently ransacked by rebels and many items from chairs to airconditioning units have been looted. many of the hundreds of thousands of refugees who fled syria for lebanon during the long— running civil war are now attempting to return. crowds have been gathering at border crossings. these pictures show released prisoners chanting in the streets outside of the present north of the capital. analysts say the country is now at a crossroads over whether rebel leader, abu mohammad al—jolani, will opt for a path to democracy. our correspondent barbara plett usher has reached damascus, and has just sent this report. the bbc is the only british

broadcaster to be in the capital. rebels and their supporters celebrate in the capital, their astonishing success at ending decades of rule by the assad regime. it fell with breathtaking speed. the army rapidly retreating in the face of the rebel advance. last week it was aleppo, yesterday another city. last night, the outskirts of damascus. the rebels went straight to a notorious prison to set the inmates free. this is where people are celebrating in the central square. civilians and rebels. you can hear at the sound of celebratory gunfire. people are giving peace signs and saying neither is going to be so much better now that bashar al—assad is gone but there is a mix of m is gone but there is a mix of joy and fear in the city. there are those who supported bashar al—assad who felt they were protected by him and now they are wondering what is going to happen. led by the islamist

group hayat tahrir al—sham, their leader plays down past links to al-qaeda, saying they want to build a syria for all its people. in the name of god, the most gracious, by the grace of god almighty, the city of damascus has been liberated. the tyrant bashar al—assad has been toppled. from the syrian prime minister, also a message of calm. we are all concerned about this country and its institutions and facilities. i am here in my home, and i do not intend to leave it except in a peaceful manner in order to ensure the continuation of the work of public institutions. the president has fled. his whereabouts unknown. a statue pulled down shortly before he flew out of the country. syria is in a state ofjoy and fear. hoping for peace and fearing chaos. different groups control

different areas. no one knows how this will play out, but whatever happens here will be felt across the middle east. some people are quite afraid. those who supported the regime felt protected by it. they are basically staying at home right now. the presidential palace of bashar al assad has been almost stripped bare by looters. hundreds of others are milling around, come to see a place that was off limits before. from outside the residence, in damascus, lina sinjab sent this report. this is turned into a luton picnic. lots of people, many coming from rural areas, have

come to the palace and they have almost destroyed everything had looted everything had looted everything inside this building. now, members of the htsjust arrived to building. now, members of the hts just arrived to control the situation. they said that this is not acceptable and they will be stopping the looting from happening and you can see some of them arriving. at the seams inside are incredible. i've lived all my life in syria and for the past ten years outside syria and have never been into this street and i can see how people are rushing into the place, also with lots of happiness that they have managed to break in, that they managed to break in, that they managed to break in, that they managed to topple assad and that now this is all, their own belongings that they are taking. the scene is very chaotic inside and that has been looting and other government buildings but this is a different situation. people are going in, posing for pictures by taking what they

can from this building. another of our correspondent inside the syrian capital. perhaps the most important question, who are the rebels who have taken control of damascus and syria's other main cities? given the support which are and russia had been offering president assad what will this do to the balance of power in the middle east? and given that the stocks of modern military equipment and it is believed chemical weapons which were controlled by the assad government, what will the rebels do next? let's speak to prof michael clarke, who is a former director general of rusi and a visiting professor in the department of war studies at king's college london. very good to have you with us on the programme. some of those questions, i want to put to you as well and let's talk, first of all, about who the rebels

are, who their leader is, what their intentions might be. well, hts, hayat tahrir al—sham, claim to be a syrian nationalist group. not entirely secular. they are a religious group but they split off originally from isis. they then joined al-qaeda and sped away from al-qaeda and now the claim to have come across the spectrum but the leader of the group still has a $10 million bounty on his head because he is a known terrorist. you've beenin is a known terrorist. you've been in prison, he was planting bombs, he is known to be responsible for the murder of quite a lot of people so the question is, does he knew what he says now and if he does mean that, what about the people around him? ithink that, what about the people around him? i think we have a right to be sceptical and while hts were in control from where they broke out from a few weeks ago, they were running a pretty authoritarian system and it was not as draconian as an islamic

state but it was certainly not exactly a liberal place so i think we ought to be careful about this and he is saying the things he thinks he needs to say to the outside world, specifically to the western world. what will mean internally we have just got to see and whatever happens in damascus and eu government won't have control over the whole of syria because north of syria as part turkey occupied some of it, the kurdish resistance occupy some of that, kurdish groups, so assad never had control over the whole country it has not had since 2012. any new government will inherit that fragmentation that he suffered, in any case. there is that saying. _ he suffered, in any case. there is that saying, if _ he suffered, in any case. there is that saying, if someone - is that saying, if someone shows you who they are, believe them. i suppose one of the other questions right now is whether he will appear that to truly form a government or from a transition period, i should say, that will be for all syrians. some of the other opposition groups around

damascus before hts but of course this whole change in the regime was spearheaded by hts, some of those other opposition groups more secular in their make—up? groups more secular in their make-up?— groups more secular in their make-u - ? , , make-up? yes, they were. some ofthe make-up? yes, they were. some of the grouns _ make-up? yes, they were. some of the groups that _ make-up? yes, they were. some of the groups that were _ of the groups that were involved in the so—called southern front in the south, that was more than 50 groups and some are very secular. they were very western inclined, some of them. not others. and they were in and out of associations, some of them, with the assad government they fought amongst themselves. and some of them have remained more consistent but the southern front is literally a loose coalition of many, many groups who now sees an opportunity and so everyone will say the right things at the moment when there is this adulation was this great celebration that assad has gone, it is just like sudan hussein falling in a riot, what happens in a couple of days' time will be more important because groups will then start

to consider where is their position in any new situation which will arise.— which will arise. and i'm guessing _ which will arise. and i'm guessing one _ which will arise. and i'm guessing one of- which will arise. and i'm guessing one of the - which will arise. and i'm l guessing one of the things which will arise. and i'm - guessing one of the things that we should be looking at is to see whether there is an effort to maintain those institutions of government and even a police force and the military, not that the generals who were close allies of tom, who have probably fled but the regular police force, the regular troops and to try to maintain some of those structures within the country. some of those structures within the country-— some of those structures within the country. yeah, i mean, that is exactly _ the country. yeah, i mean, that is exactly what _ the country. yeah, i mean, that is exactly what he _ the country. yeah, i mean, that is exactly what he said. - the country. yeah, i mean, that is exactly what he said. the - is exactly what he said. the prime minister. he made it a very interesting appeal when he said, look, iwill work very interesting appeal when he said, look, i will work with anybody. i'm going to my office in the morning. i will be in my office but please respect the institutions because he knows that, ultimately, that is what any country, that is all that any country, that is all that any country, that is all that any country has got. government depends on its institutions and you're absolutely right. the syrian army has dissolved and in no way does not matter so much of their individual units like brigade 50 might still be around but, more importantly, what about the police? what

with the police to do question who is commanding the police not at the top level but at lower levels? and with an incoming group of would—be governors or group of people who say they are now the government, will they be able to, as it were, influence the institutions and with the institutions and with the institutions respect them? some very big question is coming up the next few days to see if this thing can be handled in a stabilising way or if, as happened say in libya, as happened say in libya, as happened in iraq after a certain time, that itjust spins out of control? in this case if it spins out of control it would spin, i would guess, fairly quickly. it would spin, i would guess, fairly quickly-— fairly quickly. will it be discipline _ fairly quickly. will it be discipline or _ fairly quickly. will it be discipline or whether i fairly quickly. will it be discipline or whether it j fairly quickly. will it be i discipline or whether it be chaos? just want to ask you as well, finally, for your thoughts on what this means that the balance of power in the wider region?— that the balance of power in the wider region? well, i mean, in the short _ the wider region? well, i mean, in the short term, _ the wider region? well, i mean, in the short term, the _ in the short term, the immediate winners from this is real and turkey. both of them have got, are trying to remake the politics for their own reasons are better than get the

opportunity to further their own agendas in that respect. they are the short term winners. the short term losers are iran and russia. around because it loses a major client in assad, have been keeping him going for years, they lose their easy route to lebanon and hezbollah which is suffered in any rate with the war in israel, so iran clearly loses and a set back a lot by this. and so is russia. russia has been a friend to syria right from the days of assad and his father and the russians out of the present civil war that began in 2012 have got to basis out of it. unable base and an air base. and will almost certainly lose both of those bases. are the jumping certainly lose both of those bases. are thejumping off points. it is its only mediterranean naval base and the other is 1539 00: