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always great. >> go to deal dash dot com right now and see how much you can save. >> i'm natasha bertrand at the pentagon and this is cnn this is cnn breaking news well, hello and welcome to viewers watching around the world. >> i'm becky anderson, and we begin with breaking news in syria, where 50 years of authoritarian rule by the assad family has crumbled in the face of a lightning fast rebel offensive. in a statement carried on state tv, the rebels declared they have, quote liberated the capital damascus

well, the rebels are seen celebrating on the grounds of the syrian presidential palace and they are searching, they say, for president bashar al-assad, who has not been seen or heard from since early tells cnn that the syrian military there has fallen as scenes of chaos unfolded inside damascus airport early sunday, with people rushing to flee the country. here is what the syrian prime minister had to say about the growing crisis. >> we are ready to cooperate with any leadership. >> the people choose, offering all possible support to ensure a smooth and systematic transition of government functions, preserving state facilities well, rebels have been sweeping through the country since launching this offensive last week. >> they claim to have captured

four cities in one day before reaching the capital of damascus. well syrians seen tearing down and setting fire to posters of the president assad. rebels say senior assad regime officials are preparing now to defect in the capital. well, for more on this, let's get you live to paula hancocks is with me in the studio here in abu dhabi. this is going at lightning speed, so let's just get us back up to speed on where we stand at this point. what do we understand to be happening on the ground? >> so, becky we've had the official announcement now from the rebels. they've taken over the the state run media to to control the narrative. they have come on air and they say that they have liberated damascus, saying the city of damascus was liberated. the regime of the tyrant bashar al-assad was toppled, also saying that all the prisoners from the the state prisons, they call them political prisoners, were also released. now, what we understand is that the rebels said that they were

going to try and take over key strategic institutions within the city, as well we have seen that they have been on the grounds of one of the presidential palaces. it's very reminiscent of what we've seen in the past when there has been a brutal dictator toppled and those who have come to liberate the city have have then moved into those particular areas. we have heard from a source familiar with, with this as well, that the rebels are actively looking for bashar al-assad at this point, that they are they're questioning senior military officials. they're questioning intelligence officials to try and find out exactly where he is, because he hasn't been seen since the rebels started to to enter the capital. there are plenty of reports out there about where he may be that he has fled the city. he's fled the country. we don't have confirmed reporting on this at this point but he hasn't been seen. so it is a very different damascus, a very different syria that the residents are

waking up to this morning. >> and some of these images absolutely remarkable given where this country has been for more than a decade, decade embroiled in conflict but we've been in this sort of you know, somewhat period of somewhat status quo for some years. and then suddenly in the past week we have seen this huge rebel offensive. so when we talk about the rebels, what are we who do we mean, who are these rebels? who are they associated with? who's funding them there are a number of different groups. >> there's one main group that we need to know about, which is hts this is the hayat tahrir al-sham they're the ones that have been leading the charge effectively across the country. and that that are leading in damascus. but there are a myriad of different rebel groups that are part of this in different parts of the country. as well. there are some that are turkish backed, some that

are american backed, some that are kurdish fighters that turkey considers to be a terrorist organization. so it is an incredibly complex group of different, of different entities that are part of this. but hts is most definitely the most prominent part. it is a group that up until just several years ago, was affiliated with al qaeda. so this is this is a group that i mean the individual al-julani abu mohammad al-jolani, who's the head a $10 million bounty on his head. he is designated or his group's designated as a terrorist organization so it's not a simple, clear picture that we're looking at here that the bad has been removed and the good comes in it is extremely complex and it's difficult to see what happens next and what unfolds over the coming days is going to be absolutely fascinating. >> and thank you for the time being. paula hancocks is in abu dhabi with me. i'm joined now by kim ghattas. kim is a global politics fellow at columbia university, a contributing writer to the atlantic, a good friend of this show joins us

live from los angeles. kim firstly, i just want to get your assessment of what we are seeing and hearing on the ground in syria at this hour becky, great to be with you and very strange for me to be in los angeles, where i happen to be for a work trip, but where i really want to be is back home in, in beirut, because these are truly momentous, historic events for syria, for syrians, for lebanon and the region, as a whole. >> a murderous dictatorship that has ruled over syria for 54 years, occupied lebanon for 35 years, and then pushed this country into a bloody civil war after 2011, when a civilian uprising demanded freedom and reforms that dictatorship has now come to an end. we don't know where bashar al-assad is, but it is game over for him. i

don't foresee any possible return of pockets of resistance. this is really the end, and it has implications for the wider region, for the iranian axis of proxy militias in the region, from iraq to lebanon, for hezbollah, specifically across the border in lebanon which has been decimated in this war with israel that just ended with a ceasefire just last week. and all of this is coinciding with that, with that ceasefire, which is really interesting to to note, um, for hezbollah, this is a moment where they will feel isolated geographically because they will no longer be able to rely on supply lines of weapons from iran. and politically, because their key patron, iran, feels vulnerable and their key ally in syria, bashar al-assad. the assad regime is now gone. but most importantly becky, this is

a moment where even though we know we at some point tomorrow after tomorrow, need to think about what this is going to mean for the future of syria. it's a treacherous dangerous road ahead there could be infighting between the different rebel groups. there could be more violence. we can only hope for a smooth transition from here. but this is really a moment to embrace the joy that syrians are feeling, to see their country returning to them and away from this dictatorship. the scenes from damascus, from aleppo from homs, from hama, from these prisons where people are being let free are just incredible. and that is a moment, really, that we need to pause and and give credit to the syrians who worked so hard and paid so dearly in blood and soil over those over those years and and

there is no doubt that millions of syrians will be celebrating today. >> those who are outside of the country, displaced outside of the country, and there are millions of those and the millions internally of course, who are displaced as many as 14 million. let's just step back for a moment and consider what has happened over the past week. this lightning speed offensive by these rebel groups who are they and what is your assessment of the planning and strategy for this past week's worth of offensive i mean, in a way we can say that they've been planning this for 13 years, really and that this was at some point going to, um, maybe not be inevitable. >> but this is, you know, this has been a long time in the making. i don't think that

anybody expected or foresaw the downfall of bashar al-assad. so quickly. but a lot of these groups have been around for a while. as your colleague was saying earlier, you know, hayat tahrir al sham in the north, kurdish factions in the north east other factions in the south. and this became, in essence, a pincer movement that isolated bashar al-assad in damascus and the rebel groups had spent some time it appears, and i think a lot of details will be revealed in the coming days or weeks had spent some time setting up coordination amongst each other and infiltrating, of course the regime itself. and they were able to do that because the regime of bashar al-assad was in essence, ruling over what was a decrepit state excuse me? that was falling apart, that couldn't really provide for its people anymore. and the result is it crumbled so, so quickly. another element as i

mentioned, is the ceasefire that happened recently in lebanon after a devastating war which decimated hezbollah, which showed that bashar al assad was was going to be on his own. from now on. there was really no possibility anymore for hezbollah to come to his aid, as they had in the past. similarly for iran and of course, russia is busy with ukraine as well. so bashar al-assad was on his own, and this was the moment for these opposition groups, these rebel groups to to strike with the tacit support of a country like turkey. and to some extent, i think also a different attitude within israel, because they've always thought that the assad regime was convenient for israel. they haven't launched one attack against israel since 1973, and always used proxies like hezbollah to make life difficult for israel. but the assad regime sitting in damascus was quite a convenient enemy for israel, except that i think there's a realization.

there's been a realization in israel that bashar al-assad also allowed iran and hezbollah to grow powerful on israel's eastern flank. and that simply did not suit anymore. in the current context of this region kim, it's good to have you. >> thank you very much indeed for the time being, as we consider these images into cnn we've got a lot more breaking news on syria. millions of syrians, as we say, will be celebrating today. there will be thousands of others in damascus allied with the president, bashar al assad regime, who will be feeling extremely apprehensive at this point. we are getting reports that key figures have been defecting, both from the administration and from the military. can't stand that up as of yet. these things will come to light in the hours to come. bashar al-assad, as kim

was pointing out, supported for years by iran and by russia. and it does seem to be the assessment of experts in this region that they have abandoned him. and why at this point is key to, um the basis for this story is key to understanding what is going on here. and we will do that in the hours to come. but the city of damascus and other cities across syria today, a very different place than they were just 24 hours ago. it's led this overthrow to scenes like this, not just in damascus, of course, but other syrian cities like homs, with people in the streets gunfire celebratory gunfire in many places. but again let's consider that this is not a move from dictatorship to democracy overnight by any stretch of the imagination. and we will continue to get more

for you on this. as i say in the hours to come, we will take a very short break back after this tomorrow on cnn, it's a night that's good for the soul. >> join anderson cooper and laura coates for cnn heroes, an all star tribute. >> thank you guys. >> meet the honorees and celebrate their life changing achievements. >> they are ordinary people doing extraordinary things. >> then find out who will be named the cnn hero of the year. >> it's really incredible. >> plus, don't miss a special tribute to this year's legacy award honoree, michael j. fox cnn heroes, an all star tribute tomorrow at 8:00 on cnn. >> from dress the bird to deck the halls so many ways to save life. >> ready? wallet. >> happy that's 365 by whole foods market. >> an alternative to pills. >> voltaren is a clinically proven arthritis pain relief

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on the things you want need, we'll match it. plus, with milo's rewards, you can earn points when you shop to make the holidays even more sweet. lowe's knows how to help you holiday it's the most wonderful time with verizon, trade in any phone, any condition for a limited time. >> get iphone 16 pro with apple intelligence get four on us only on verizon. >> i wish my tv provider let me choose what i pay for and pause my subscription when i want and have hundreds of free channels. >> sling lets you do that. >> choose and customize your channel lineup or watch for free. sling lets you do that update now on the breaking news in syria. >> rebel troops searching for president bashar al-assad after declaring on state tv that they have liberated damascus and i quote them there video showing celebrations like this one happening in damascus and in

other cities and in the al-mawasi neighborhood of the capital. these people carried a huge syrian rebel flag down the street. the area houses government institutions or rebels now control a large section of syria. as you see in green on this map government forces are said to be in control of the areas in red. the country's prime minister says he is ready to work with, quote, any leadership that the people choose. the united nations envoy for syria, calling for calm and calling to avoid bloodshed the need for an orderly political transition has never been more urgent starting with the urgent formation of inclusive and credible transitional arrangements in syria for this, we need an urgent, serious process fundamentally different

from what has gone on before well, russian, turkish and iranian foreign ministers met in doha on saturday. they were together as part of the astana process meant to seek a political solution to the syrian conflict. geir pedersen was speaking to there. they expressed concern for the syrian people even as events on the ground sped forward at lightning speed. it was an unexpected pace. turkey particularly concerned about potential refugees they say millions of syrians, of course have sought refuge in other countries since the civil war began in 2011. the majority have settled in turkey. nearly 3 million more than 7 million are internally displaced. well russia had been a strong supporter of the assad regime,

particularly since 2014. they helped keep him in power during what has been this country's civil war. let's get you some more perspective now from cnn's paula newton. paula, how was assad supported by russia and why? what was moscow's interest in what was a very significant presence there? >> absolutely. >> a significant press presence and definitely, as you say, for about a decade now, and russia, in coming to assad's aid. and as you know, becky, it is very doubtful that assad would have been able to hang on and really fought out that syrian civil war the way they did to hang on without russia's help crucially, crucially with its air superiority at stake now though, becky, is russia and two very key assets that it has in syria. that would be an air base. but also the important port of tartus. and it seems in some way, shape or form, becky,

that russia is coming to terms with this seismic change in the balance of power that will now happen in the region. and it's interesting because sergey lavrov, as you were just saying, was at the doha forum. certainly he met with his colleagues from both, um, from turkey as well to discuss exactly what was going on. and yet he seemed to have only words and very little else in terms of support for syria. in fact, he said that at this point in time, he thought that using terrorists to in his words, achieve geopolitical purposes was not the way to do this. and he said that russia did not care how it looked, as if they were suffering a loss in syria and that their concern was for the russian people but it is crucial that even at a time think about it, becky, even this week russia was carrying out military exercises from both that air base and from that key port off the coast. there in the mediterranean coast. and yet did not come to the aid of syria in any material form i

think the seismic shift continues, and i think that when you look at the transactional nature of the trump administration coming in, that russia has decided that perhaps backing al-assad in this way would have been more trouble than it was worth, especially given how stretched they are in ukraine and have decided to leave it at this again. you could definitely sense the air of resignation yesterday with mr. lavrov speaking about this at length but not wanting to. and in fact wanting to speak more about ukraine and that certainly spoke volumes. we will continue to see in the coming hours and days exactly what their involvement was, if any, and whether or not if al assad is truly out of syria, whether or not russia aided in his safe passage yeah. >> why they have decided to abandon him now and why, um why this makes strategic sense at this point is a discussion that we will continue to have over the days to come um, we know

that president assad has been traveling between damascus and moscow um, for years. we know that he was in moscow very recently where he is now. um, not clear at this point, reports suggesting that he had flown out of damascus. but the routing of that flight not clear. and we are only reading reports that are sort of available on widely at this point about where he might be. and we will continue to source more information on his whereabouts. paula newton for the time being, thank you very much indeed. so that is the sort of syria through the perspective of russia, rebel forces meantime in syria, then mounting what was a lightning offensive this week. they have taken much of the country, including the capital from government control. the latest on that and more. what happens next in syria? why this is significant not just for syria and syrians, but what this

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bashar al-assad whose whereabouts are currently unknown in the capital. scenes like this are playing out. people standing on a tank posing with weapons, waving a syrian flag. and this was what was happening at the damascus airport. this video verified by cnn, shows dozens of people quickly passing through security checkpoints some rushing to departure gates in an attempt to flee the country. the airport, though, appeared to be largely unstaffed and flight monitoring websites showed no imminent departures scheduled. clearly, you know apprehension on the part of some syrians, those potentially aligned with the regime and celebration um, by so many others in so many of these cities hours ago, syria's prime minister announced the government stands ready to, quote, cooperate with any leadership. the people choose to ensure a smooth and systematic transition. cnn's

nic robertson explains how that transition could look with the current militant leader of bts spearheading this takeover giuliani as head of rts is the military commander, and we're still in the military phase. >> so this is very much under under under his control the political move forward from this. and he's articulated in part, he said that he wants to see all foreign forces leave the country and another senior political figure who's been on the landscape of trying to negotiate peace with the assad regime almost a decade ago and has been very much at the forefront of of continuing as a political leader in the opposition. he told me this. he said, look, once you have that military control, once you have that transition of power the government, this sort of the

government institutions, the government buildings, the running of the country, the day to day, the paying of pensions, all those sorts of things that are, that are, that are vital for the country to keep ticking along. um, once the military has done its job of securing the cities and the countryside, they want to be able to pass on to a political onto a political set of leaders. and the initial idea would be that that there would be an interim period of a 6 to 9 month period of a, of a sort of a power sharing agreement between all the different political factions before it would then go to a vote for the public. and that's that's really aspirational at this stage. i mean, let's remember that this evening tonight in damascus the rebel command has told their fighters not to shoot in the air. but we're seeing a lot of shooting in the air and the fight to for control of the

whole country is not over yet. we're seeing pockets of it, pieces of it. we don't know where bashar al assad will end up. and if he'll coalesce support around him, and if that will be in the north west of the country or the mediterranean around latakia you know, sort of his home turf, if you will where where he has a lot of support. and if the rebels would try to shut that down, and if they can do it quickly, the political process perhaps holds on that there are so many, so many questions at this moment but i think everything that we've seen so far indicates that they do want to make a smooth transition and that there is a plan when i spoke to this political very senior political figure earlier, this evening, um, i did not expect him to be able to tell me specifically, step by step what they what they plan to do. um, but it's very clear that planning has been going on well, that's nic robertson for you joining me now is badr

al-saif. >> badr is a history professor at kuwait university and an associate fellow at chatham house. he's in doha in qatar where many of the key regional stakeholders are. this weekend it's good to have you, but i know you have been speaking to those behind the scenes there who are gathered in doha this weekend. what we are witnessing is historic this is historic for syria and syrians. after 50 years of authoritarian rule by the assad family. and this is historic monumental, pivotal for this wider region and let's start there and then zoom in, because as we witnessed over the past week or so, what has been this lightning fast rebel, um, push towards damascus this wider region has been watching this and wondering what happens next. can you just explain what

your assessment is at this point you're right, becky this is a momentous time in the history of the middle east. >> the syrians have spoken. we have to listen. they've been speaking for decades. this is a moment in time in which arabs have proven once again that they are normal, like any other part of the world in which people have agency, they can speak up. and if a regime is not serving its people, it's the time for it to move on. and i think that the people of syria have shown us just that. this is different from the various momentous changes that took place in other places in the middle east in the past decades in which iraq and libya had foreign intervention. this was done from within by syria. so i think we need to recognize this. we also need to recognize the miseries the agonies, the injustices that the syrian people have gone through over the decades. so this is a momentous time. no doubt. and there is also the regional element. there will be a major

regional shift in the balance of power with iran weakening, with, uh the opening up of spaces, uh, for various parties. so iran is no longer, uh, can claim the shiite crescent, if you may this is a different thing that the region has not witnessed in decades. and there is also a reckoning for other proxies that i'm sure are nervous. the houthis watching how iran is reacting to the syria situation and how they need to recalibrate in yemen, for example there is also a rethinking in place in which the migration process or the migration issue and the refugee status of the many syrians in europe and other parts of the world. now, this is another issue that now will see a comeback and could resolve some of the strains that probably turkey and the europeans states have had in the past. so there are various levels to it. it's a multi-layered process. it's very complex. we have more questions than answers, but i think we need to keep in mind

that this is something that shows that the region has always been shifting. the region will continue to shift, and i think we need to manage those expectations. moving forward so, badr, let's talk about this, um, axis of resistance that you speak to. >> and you very specifically talked about the houthis, for example in yemen, which is part of this. i mean, you could argue that this is the fall of the berlin wall moment for the iran backed axis of resistance gone, it seems now is the influence of iran through its proxy groups around this region. what that means for iran and the and the arab world is huge. and you are absolutely right to point that out. so what does that look like going forward? and let's just explain for our viewers what has

happened over the past, what sort of 18 months or so that has brought us to where we are today? because what is been going on in syria? um is as is part of a kind of wider tectonic plate shifting that has been going on now for some time. i also want you to speak very specifically to these rebel groups. if you will, because they are armed and backed by others and let's be quite clear about this. this is not a lurch from dictatorship or authoritarian sort of rule by the assad family over 50 years to democracy overnight, by any stretch of the imagination. so this is this is going to be very complex very complicated and possibly uh, quite painful before things might get better for those syrians on the ground and those who are abroad who might want to go home at this point sure.

>> let me start with the last question. look, there is no doubt that the syrian people have been in a bind between the assad regime and now with what you have in hayat tahrir al sham and it's interesting that they've been fighting different wars or different layered wars. there has been a war of narratives. they're trying to pose as a post-islamist group that's more moderate in demeanor. we've seen them release different statements, even in different languages, trying to, you know, reach out to the iranians, to the shiites protection of, you know, minorities and spaces. reach out to neighboring countries like iraq and jordan and reach out to the different minorities in the country. it's still words we need to see more actions to make sure that this is where we're going to head given the track record of previous groups along that space, it hasn't been encouraging. it will be a very interesting space for them to up the game and to walk the talk. now in terms of the axis of resistance for decades, iran has been putting forward what

they call a forward defense strategy in which their battles are fought across proxy and mainly arab land. and this is an issue that we've had when it comes to iran interfering in internal affairs. and this has been in the past 18 months, been moving through a very serious time has it? can we call the axis of resistance dead i would be cautious to not declare that as of yet they've been seriously damaged i think it behooves the iranians to think quite hard, and that there is an arm stretched from the gulf arab states, and they want to work with them together in moving this region into a more secure issue. look, the issue is with iran, they need to join us in the gulf arab states in putting out a more moderate vision for their own people. this is a region that needs to coexist with different factions and different backgrounds. and this has been the message. now they have the place for them to prove that with syria, they haven't reacted to the fall of assad in

trying to pump him up as they did ten years ago. this is a moment in which has it has been delayed for the syrian people. so we need to say, see how this moves forward with the iranian involvement everyone is watching. and i think other spaces in the region will also be looking for ways in which they can also overcome the tensions that they're undergoing, namely in yemen at this moment but it's really good to have you on your analysis and insight is so important, and you provide that much wider lens that we need as we concentrate our efforts on the ground today in in pulling in video for our viewers and understanding what is going on on the ground in trying to identify where bashar al assad is at this point and what happens next, that wider lens, what goes on in syria does not stay in syria, and that wider lens is so important. >> and just for our viewers sake, the u.s. administration,

as we understand it, the biden administration watching developments in syria and we will get more from the white house and stay as we move through the day bader al-saif in doha, thank you very much indeed. we are going to take a very quick break back after this tomorrow on cnn. >> it's a night that's good for the soul. join anderson cooper and laura coates for cnn heroes, an all star tribute thank you guys. meet the honorees and celebrate their life changing achievements. >> they are ordinary people doing extraordinary things. >> then find out who will be named the cnn hero of the year it's really incredible. plus, don't miss a special tribute to this year's legacy award honoree, michael j. fox cnn heroes, an all star tribute tomorrow at 8:00 on cnn. >> everyone's running to subway for three. all new spicy

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the capital of damascus has been liberated, claiming president bashar al assad has been overthrown people celebrating in the streets, some carrying a huge rebel flag. >> the rebels actively searching for assad, who has not been seen or heard from now in days, a source tells cnn they are questioning syrian military officers and intelligence officials who might have knowledge about assad's movements. well, rebel fighters have taken over several cities in what has been a shock offensive launched just last week, syria's prime minister says the government is ready to, quote, cooperate with any leadership. the people choose all the u.s. or the biden administration says it is watching developments in syria. meantime, us president-elect donald trump weighed in on the escalating situation in syria posting on social media in the past 24 hours or so, quote, the united states should have

nothing to do with it this is not our fight. let it play out. do not get involved. exclamation mark. but trump also criticized the obama administration for failing to enforce a 2013 red line, which stated that syria's use of chemical weapons would mean u.s. military action. the president elect also said that the ouster of bashar al-assad might be good for russia, because there is no benefit for moscow in supporting syria. well, we have certainly seen what appears to be the abandoning of president assad by both russia and iran. the days ahead, of course will reveal more. but certainly the influence a significant influence that we've seen from russia militarily in support of president bashar al-assad since 2013, 2014. and that red line moment with president obama, um that significant military influence certainly is nowhere

to be seen from the russians at present for a closer look at the military situation, then in syria, retired u.s. army major general mark mccauley joins us now. and from a military perspective, sir, what is firstly your assessment of what has unfolded in the past week in syria well, it's got to be historic and as i discussed a few minutes ago, it was a huge, to use a term surprise unanticipated, not necessarily impossible, but the collapse and the fall of the syrian army in what amounts to about five days, is an extraordinary event um, just looking at the capabilities that the syrian army had over time, a lot of us expected that assad would put up some level of defense, especially as the rebel forces were approaching damascus.

>> um the thought process was that assad's what can best be called sort of its pretorian guard, meaning his closest those soldiers most loyal to him would have ringed the city and prevented any sort of entry. didn't happen. so you have a collapse of support for assad. but there is a further sort of conversation point that i really believe we've got to put forward, and that is we've got rebel forces have established a foothold in damascus certainly homs, hama and aleppo and the surrounding areas. the one thing that we have not yet discussed, which is a big concern, is the is the extent to which assad, over the last years during the course of the civil war and afterward, has rearmed his country and that includes the missiles, the drones and more significantly

um, caches of what we suspect chemical weapons and the question would be whether or not, in a moment of desperation. >> hold that thought. yeah. the question will be, of course, what? you know what happens to those next. exactly yeah. let me just run two other things past you while i've got you here. from a military perspective, what is your assessment of what is the seeming abandonment by russia a key strategic ally of the president, in waging this war against the opposition? since 2013? >> certainly um, there's no possible way i can put myself into putin's head or those leaders in the kremlin who are focusing on what's taking place in syria. but i think that this is sort of a tactical, not necessarily strategic, strategic meaning the big picture, but this is a tactical

decision on the part of moscow that assad has got to go. he has limited support. um, what i would expect moscow to do in the next couple of days is to establish and reach out to the rebels across the span of the organizations that constitute the hga and begin to establish relationships there, which from our perspective and american perspective, should be an objective on our part as well good stuff mark, it's good to have you. >> thank you very much indeed. um and as we talk about russia, i just want to bring up what the president-elect donald trump has actually posted within the last 40 minutes. i read before we got to mark mccauley the post by donald trump in the past 24 hours saying, this is not our fight. the us should not be involved. well, this is what he has

posted within the last 40 minutes. so let's just have a look at this. given that this is the president of the united states from january the 20th, what is going on now will still be sort of being gamed out between now and then so what donald trump says now is significant, and this is what he has said in the last 40 minutes. assad is gone. he has fled his country, his protector russia, russia, russia led by vladimir putin, not interested in protecting him any longer. these are the words, of course, of donald trump there was no reason for russia to be there in the first place. they lost all interest in syria because of ukraine, where close to 600,000 russian soldiers lay wounded or dead in a war that should never have started and could go on forever. russia and iran are in a weakened state right now. he posts one because of ukraine and a bad economy, the other because of israel. and its fighting success likewise, zelenskyy and ukraine would like to make a deal and

stop the madness again. the words of donald trump here, posting on truth social he says they had ridiculously lost 400,000 soldiers and many more civilians. there should be an immediate ceasefire and negotiations should begin too many lives are being so needlessly wasted, too many families destroyed, and if it keeps going it can turn into something much bigger and far worse. i know vladimir well, says donald trump. this is his time to act china can help the world is waiting. the post of the president elect, the u.s. president elect donald trump. in the past 40 minutes or so, we are covering what is going on in syria. this is a breaking story. it has significance, not just in russia, but for the wider region. and given the refugee sort of crisis wider than just the middle east, back after this

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announcing on syrian television that damascus has been liberated and social media video from the city of homs shows a large crowd tearing down a statue of former syrian president hafez al assad you're watching cnn newsroom i'm becky anderson. we are going to take a very short break. back with more of our breaking news after this tomorrow on cnn. >> it's a night that's good for the soul. join anderson cooper and laura coates for cnn heroes on all star tribute. >> thank you guys. >> meet the honorees and celebrate their life changing achievements. >> they're ordinary people doing extraordinary things. >> then find out who will be named the cnn hero of the year. >> it's really incredible. >> plus, don't miss a special tribute to this year's legacy award honoree, michael j. fox cnn heroes, an all star tribute

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>> this is cnn, the world's news network. this is cnn breaking news. >> well hello and welcome. i'm becky anderson time here is midday, 12:00 here in abu dhabi. and we begin with breaking news in syria where 50 years of authoritarian rule by the assad family has crumbled in the face of a lightning fast rebel offensive it's over. in a statement carried on state tv, the rebels declared they have, quote liberated the capital, damascus claiming president bashar al-assad has been overthrown with the help of god. >> the city of damascus was liberated and the regime of the tyrant bashar al-assad was toppled. all prisoners from the prisons of the regime were liberated the operation center of fateh dimashq ask all brothers, jihadists and citizens to preserve all the

belongings of the syrian state. long live free syria and in this video, you see prime minister mohammad qazi al jalali being escorted by rebels in damascus on sunday, they purportedly took him to a hotel to hand him over to government authority. >> the prime minister had said earlier that the government is ready to quote cooperate with any leadership. the people choose well, rebels were seen celebrating on the grounds of the syrian presidential palace. they say they are searching for assad, who has not been seen or heard of now for some days rebels have been sweeping through the country since launching this offensive last week. they claim to have captured four cities in one day before reaching damascus, the

capital in the south. well, syrians were seen tearing down and setting fire to posters of assad rebels say senior assad regime officials are preparing to defect in the capital. well, correspondent paula hancocks monitoring events. she joins me now from abu dhabi. what is the very latest that we have from the ground, paula well, becky, there will be millions around syria today who will be very pleased, will be celebrating that this has happened. >> there will also be caution, though, as to what comes next. now we know that the rebels themselves, they have taken over the television building. we saw that statement saying that they have liberated damascus giving a statement saying to all those around the world that free syria is back, saying that the regime of the tyrant bashar al-assad has been

toppled. now we also know that they have been taking up positions in key strategic places throughout the the capital. we know that they have been actively searching for the for bashar al-assad himself. we understand from a source familiar with this situation that the rebels have been questioning some senior military officials, some intelligence officials trying to find out exactly where he is. there are many reports about where he may be at this point, but he certainly has not been heard from since rebels started to to enter into the capital. and we also know that that the rebels have been uh, what they say liberating a certain number of prisons. there were many political prisoners inside these prisons in the saidnaya military prison just north of damascus, a very famous,

infamous prison which amnesty several years ago called the the human slaughterhouse. these prisons have now been opened up. we understand by the rebels. they are releasing those inside. so they will certainly be many who are celebrating. we have seen those celebrations on the street. we have seen some of the statues of bashar al-assad, of his father as well who was a brutal dictator and president before him being toppled. so it is a very different syria that we are looking at today, that people will be will be coming to terms with. but of course, there are many questions about what comes next becky the support of the opposition group paula, great. >> thank you very much indeed. a very, very very busy day here with me. now is mina al-oraibi. she's the editor in chief of the national, a global news organization based here in abu dhabi. what do you make of what is what is unfolding incredibly

historic. >> it's a moment that is deeply personal for every syrian so for those who are displaced inside their own country or refugees there are at least half of the population of syria got displaced from its homes. and then there are those who stayed in areas under the control of the regime and those who supported bashar al assad. for all of them, it's either a moment of hope or fear or a mix of both. and politically this is huge. it is 61 years of baath rule in syria and 54 years of assad family rule in syria. and so how syria goes forward from here is not only deeply important for syrians, and what it means for the syrian state but for the entire region and of course, when we put the developments in syria over the last week or so within the context of the last 14 months, the fact that hassan nasrallah, the leader of hezbollah, is no longer here, the fact that iran is on a back

foot in syria and and lebanon, but also the fact that there is a terrible raging war in gaza and that the wounds of the palestinians are not to be forgotten or ignored and so, so so i think putting it in that context is important geopolitically and regionally. but for syrians, it's deeply personal. today let's start. >> and you started in syria, and rightly so. and you've talked about how deeply personal this is for syrians both those who were there and those who are currently displaced outside of the country. millions of refugees, of course, who will be wondering, you know, what their next move is. at this point, many i am hearing are already intending to get back to syria as quickly as possible. we don't know, though, what syria will look like in the days and weeks to come. so let's talk about this opposition. who are they who are they backed by, and what's their intention at this point well, there are oppositions, right. >> so the fragmentation of the syrian opposition back from

2011 2012, hard to believe over a decade ago, the different groupings that emerged and until this moment, there were certain opposition groups that remained political. so you know, they're either based in washington or in paris, but they really lost any influence especially in the last decade. and then there are the armed groups. and, of course there is hayat tahrir al sham. and that's incredible. cnn scoop speaking to jolani and hearing directly from him that was part of seeing hayat tahrir al sham in a new light. this was a group that was very much al-qaida affiliated, and now has said that they are no longer al-qaida affiliated, but they are islamist in their outlook. and there is concern about what that means hayat tahrir al sham have been backed by turkey very directly and in previous era supported by qatar, also there is also the free syrian army, the free syrian army is not an islamist grouping they were mainly in the southern part of syria and in and out from syria. free

syrian army is made out of made up of former soldiers in the syrian army. so one, they're seen as more of a nationalistic kind of army. and also they know operationally syria much better. and in a different light than hayat hisham. there are many other groupings, smaller groupings that you can talk about in suwayda and the southern part of syria that never really calmed down mainly druze community there has been opposition there very local opposition, and they've been able to push out local forces. and so forth. what we have to keep in mind is opposition at the moment is very fluid and it's quite interesting. there is a former syrian diplomat who put a note on on his facebook post this morning. he is a diplomat. he was one of the first diplomats to defect based in washington. and he said, it's strange. i'm no longer the opposition. who am i? and so this idea of that fluid and some especially the foot soldiers, will now go and join different groupings depending on who one seems more aligned to their values, but 2nd may be

the ones winning. >> this is fascinating, and we've been making the point that we are not, you know do not expect to see a sort of lurch from dictatorship authoritarianism under the assad family rule over the past 61 years. as you rightly point out, to democracy tomorrow in syria, because that is very unlikely to happen. what happens next on the ground and how these groups sort of come together and how an opposition is formed and what that looks like um, is, will be will be revealed in the in the days and weeks to come. you mentioned, um, my colleague jomana karadsheh, his interview with mohammad al-julani, the, the head of the the grouping that you've just been speaking about and let's just run a little bit of that people listening to this are going to wonder why they should believe you. >> you are still a specially designated global terrorist by the united states with a $10 million bounty on your head

your group is a proscribed terrorist organization by the united states, by the un, by the eu, and others. >> now i say to people, don't judge by words, but by actions i believe the reality speaks for itself. >> these classifications are primarily political and at the same time wrong i define a terrorist as someone who intentionally kills civilians harms innocents, or displaces people. if we're being honest how significant a role is abu mohammad al-julani likely to take going forward or be given? >> well it's likely he's going to have a significant, significant role in this transitionary period. so it's hard to tell what will happen in a year's time. but definitely in this moment, those who hold ground are going to be able to have sway on what happens next. it's important that jolani said. judge us by our deeds, not words. it's

interesting that is what an american official said to me in manama. just yesterday, attending the dialog. manama dialog and the american position has been we're going to wait and see, because of course, let's not forget that tass hayat tahrir al sham is prescribed. it's considered a terrorist organization by the u.s. and several other countries. and so that has to be reconsidered for jolani to be able to play any active role on a political stage outside of syria. he's not going to be want to see as a terrorist, be seen as a terrorist. so i think he will have an important role in this transitory period. how he behaves and how he is able to hand over to civilian rule. of course, let's not forget the prime minister of syria at jalali has stayed in damascus he made the address to the people, not the former president. we can actually say that now not the former president, bashar al-assad, not the former president, but the prime minister. so will jolani have a relationship with the current pm and say to him, you know, we will follow your direction, but the statements from jon sarlin have been that

we are not here to try to run the day to day, you know, electricity water and so forth. they know they have to have the technocrats. that role in itself is very significant. >> let's have a little listen to a little more of the discussion that he had with jamal once an al-qaeda leader, your group has had affiliations with al-qaeda with isis and now you are projecting this image of a moderate leader and a moderate group what is bts right now? >> hayat tahrir al sham. and he listed hayat tahrir al sham is one of the factions in the region, just like all the others now we're talking about a larger project. >> we're talking about building syria. hayat tahrir al sham is merely one detail of this dialog and it may dissolve at any time it's not an end in

itself, but a means to perform a task confronting this regime a little bit more about the thinking by al-julani there you talked about the prime minister who spoke about wanting to be involved in a transition period a peaceful transition period in the past hour or so, we've seen seen him being walked out of a building by rebels who are now in damascus. >> the whereabouts of president assad still unknown, reports that he got on a flight out of damascus possibly headed in the direction of russia no further details about where that flight, if indeed he was on it and has ended up the russians seem to have decided that they have no further interest in syria after a significant military presence and support for president assad over the last. what 11 or 12 years? the iranians also, it seems whether

or not this is by decision or by default, um abandoning president bashar al assad. now, as we sit here today, you and i regularly discuss the sort of change in the architecture around this region. we are based here in the gulf of course, the tectonic plate shifting, if you will. what does this all mean for the wider region at this point, you know, it's it's hard to make accurate predictions of what comes next because as you said, we discuss things now that usually they would happen. >> one event would happen. we'd spend six months being this is seismic it's seismic, and it's happening almost on a weekly basis now in the region. but this bashar al assad leaving syria is a huge moment. i would say, just on russia, something you said they showed that they don't have interest in syria. i think they do have an interest in syria. they don't have an interest now in this regime because it became too costly and and the way that the syrian army fell back was

because it showed you how hollowed out it became that it was russian planes. it was iranian backed forces that were really keeping the assad regime in place but actually to a point that you've heard this being said from russian officials saying we can't fight harder than you know, assad's army will fight to defend his regime rather than to defend syria. russia's interests are very strong in syria continuing, and that is why it's going to be very interesting to see what sorts of agreements can be made. of course we often speak about tartus, the important mediterranean port that russia feels is is hugely important for its own strategic interests and its security. basically so what they do there will be important and just on what it means for the region, it depends what lessons have been learned from iraq tragically, completely different story in 2003. what happened in libya, what happened in yemen, what happened in sudan, and so forth if the syrians are able to learn the lesson where they determine their future, everyone's going to have an interest and will want to influence what's happening.

everyone from the iranians to the russians and others but if they are able to say, you know, this is we're going to control the situation and not allow foreign influence to supersede syrian interests than they would have been able to do a great service for their people. >> everyone will have an interest, including the gulf region where we are and very specifically the uae and the saudis, who have huge economic projects. they want to see de-escalation around this region. they want to see economic integration. they were told by the americans some years ago, support your own backyard out the region. they will say from abu dhabi and from riyadh, you know, is undergoing this sort of reorganization. they know so much more regional um, uh integration these days so that is that is absolutely clear. and you're right to, to, to talk about the wider region here. what will be interesting is where the interest is from the united states just this morning in the last 40 minutes, donald trump, the president elect, soon to take over on

january the 20th, has said very categorically on his truth social side, the u.s. has no interest in syria. this is not our war. he has also said that the russians have no interest in syria. you are right to point out that that is no interest in assad of course you have very adroitly pointed out why the russians have an interest in syria but very specifically not in this regime. but i just want to just close very briefly with a comment from you on, on this us perspective. at this point, the biden administration says simply, it is watching what is going on. >> there are hundreds of american troops still inside syria. will they be withdrawn tomorrow? i don't think so. they will want to keep eyes there. there is still al-hol camp, which has tens of thousands of isis family members there. there are ample examples of why syria is hugely important. there were reports not yet confirmed that there were israeli tanks in kuneitra in syria the us position from

trump. and he is still not president, still president elect. is that we don't want we're not going to come in and solve this. we're not going to come and try to determine what happens. but the biden administration is still in play. and i think that what is clear that americans will want to make sure there are no extremist elements, but will also want to maintain syria's territorial integrity, which is a key issue for the gulf states. also, not to allow extremists. syria's territorial integrity, but also the u.s. has had a very bad track record in the region. will this be a moment where they have a little bit more of a positive track record? and that may mean that they just stay out of it. >> it's really good to have you minas with me throughout this next hour. mina al-oraibi for the time being. thank you. i just want to step back for a moment and remember how we got here the assad family was an autocratic dynasty that held power for more than five decades. for most syrians today, they don't know their

country without the assads. and as we know, there were many attempts to topple the regime. the syrian revolution being the driving force for what we are seeing today. and it all started with just four words. it's your turn, doctor. exactly 13 years ago, five teenage boys spray painted those words directed at bashar al-assad on their school walls demanding freedom and an end to his presidency. this was back when we were of course, reporting on what was then known as the arab spring. well, they were rounded up and met with violence as protests spread across the country syria slowly descended into an endless civil war that a week ago seemed still far from over. well, hard to believe that those kids for those kids that this was daraa yesterday, opposition forces entered the

city for the first time since the start of the revolution, tearing down the statue of bashar al-assad's father the former president hafez al-assad, and dragging its head along the streets a monumental moment in their decades long struggle for freedom and what must feel like the beginning of the end. we will have a lot more on our breaking news out of syria happening right now rebel forces say damascus is free and that they are searching for president bashar al-assad. i'll be right back. after this tomorrow on cnn, it's a night that's good for the soul. >> join anderson cooper and laura coates for cnn heroes an all star tribute. >> thank you guys. >> meet the honorees and celebrate their life changing achievements they're ordinary people doing extraordinary

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calling the shots. now. they control a large section of the country. the green on the map. government forces are said to be in control of the areas in red. well, joining us now out of doha is firas mark zandi is the director of strategic outreach and a senior fellow for the middle east institute. it's good to have you, firas you're a regular guest on this show and as you consider what we have witnessed over the past 24 hours, your assessment of what is going on on the ground and why this is so historic becky, this is a momentous moment, not just for the syrian people, but for the people of the middle east, lebanese palestinians, syrians or otherwise. >> what happens in syria doesn't stay in syria. this is a regime that for over 50 years, under the mantra of freedom, unity and socialism, oppressed tortured and

disappeared many millions in syria, half a million are estimated to have lost their lives since the uprising against bashar al-assad in 2011, but also next door in lebanon, where the regime occupied lebanon for many years for hundreds of thousands of palestinian refugees in that country sometimes in the name of defending palestine but there's no doubt that this is a joyous moment for many at a human level level, it's a moment of opportunity, but it's also a moment of potential peril because many syrians don't know what comes next and particularly for minority communities, alawites offshoot of shia islam ismailis, druze and christians, there are concerns about the more islamist jihadi elements of this rebel force particularly hay'at tahrir al-sham tass which is a designated terrorist group by the united states and many of

the outside countries what will be the perspective in beirut in. >> in tel aviv? um in baghdad, this morning there will be um there will certainly be concerns about the region's wider security at this point. what is your sense of what are you hearing yeah. >> i mean, i'm reminded by the seminal work of the late historian patrick seale, the struggle for syria. and i expect that we will face something of the sorts the syria that used to exist in the 60s and prior, where it was very much an arena for regional competition. these rebel forces are predominantly supported by turkey and so turkey will no doubt emerge as a big winner in all this. but the most direct impact is going to be felt in lebanon, where hezbollah

depends on syria for strategic depth. but it's also its lifeline of support from iran. the arms that come through to lebanon and that sustain hezbollah's hegemony over the country. having just suffered a severe blow after a major war with israel this is a significant yet another blow for hezbollah and then israel. uh, they're already news of the israeli military mobilizing along the border with syria, perhaps wanting to go further and create some kind of a buffer zone, communicating and sending messages out there to the rebel forces that they need not to approach that border and potentially destabilize it further. my understanding from sources on the ground is that the rebels have already designated special regiments to control the borders, both with lebanon, because of hezbollah smuggling there. but also with israel. their focus is going to be consolidating power over the coming days and weeks, rather

than wanting to instigate any trouble with the neighbors, be it lebanon israel or iraq um, and that's certainly the narrative that we have heard from rebels, opposition leaders in the past hours. >> firas, it's fantastic to have you. thank you very much indeed. firas maksad, with his perspective from doha, where he is currently traveling back with me, is mina al arabi, the editor in chief of the national and global news organization based here in abu dhabi and firas, talking about turkey. there and the influence of ankara. as we look at pictures of sizable crowds in istanbul, these will be supporters of the opposition of rebel groups. these will be syrian refugees, very likely there are 3 million of those in turkey, of course, displaced over the past decade or so. the influence of turkey, how do you how do you assess what we should understand? >> turkey will have influence

almost on three levels. the first and most immediate, of course, is its relationship with opposition figures particularly opposition groups like hayat tahrir al-sham who's being able to sustain them over the last few years was a huge feat for turkey to continue, despite many others who used to support the opposition pulling back so so they have influence through these groups. they also have influence through the many syrians. we're seeing and the crowds there who really sought refuge in turkey and while some, of course, struggled there, the vast majority are very grateful to turkey for not closing their borders when others did. and i'd say the third source of influence is, you know, let's not forget turkey is a nato member, a member of g20, hugely influential and so they will also the opposition parties that are close to turkey will look to it to help them be accepted on the wider political stage when they're ready once they've consolidated internally, so huge influence for turkey going forward tactically, many are saying assad made a big mistake when president erdogan reelected him

a couple of years ago, effectively reached out to the syrian president and he was rebuffed. >> there are a number. i've had a number of conversations over the past 24 hours about the sort of tactical, perhaps we should call them strategic mistakes, but certainly tactical mistakes that bashar al-assad has made with leaders and countries around this region, both in the arab world and in the wider middle east. he had some options he has had options since. he has been brought in from the cold by the wider arab region. for the last couple of years, you know, and those i'm speaking to are saying, you know miscalculating those opportunities time after time. what is what is president erdogan's sort of long term strategy with regard to syria? >> i mean, the long term strategy is really to have a stable syria where turkey has influence, where turkey doesn't get any threats from syria, that, of course includes the kurds and how the kurds and assad and the sdf will act now

hugely important. but turkey is also long term interest in syria. is, is is to have the sort of influence that some people get worried about. now it you know, the turkish politicians have been very clear about saying, you know, we respect syrian sovereignty and integrity. and so forth. but there's always been, you know historical lands in syria that some turks may feel and speeches made allied to that. but i don't think they're going to do any of that. i think they genuinely want a stable syria and hugely important to be able to return some of those 3 million syrians back to syria, a key reason that had president erdogan reach out and accept the outreach from the syrian regime of bashar al-assad was because they wanted the syrian refugees to go back. they were in dire economic conditions. many of them were and so to be able to create that, you know, safe zone for them to be able to go

back, well, now, perhaps it could happen. so that's also a very important imperative domestically, because during those elections, those presidential elections, that president erdogan won, this became a very contentious topic. and when people said that you know, turkey is going through its own economic woes, we need people to go back that will be important. but the miscalculation of bashar al-assad exactly as you said, becky, rightly said, of not seizing that opportunity because for many people, they thought that's when it was really over for the syrian opposition, because bashar al-assad was being more and more accepted. italy just opened a diplomatic mission a few weeks ago in syria, and and everything's changed now. >> you and i talked about the fact that the biden administration is, quote, watching what is going on. um, it has two months left. of course in, in, in, uh in play. um you have rightly suggested that they as they game this out and they will be doing this, albeit this is moving at lightning speed. i mean, the biden administration will be gaming this out at this point. you know, there are thousands of troops deployed there and in

region. you talked about the u.s. needing to, you know ensure it looks to the lessons of history with regard to iraq. i want to talk about both the u.s. and iraq with you. after this short break we'll be back after this welcome to times square that's night of my life i was so embarrassing we are joined by john mayer. >> we are at a cat bar oh, my gosh, that's perfect tv new year's eve live with anderson and andy. >> live coverage starts at eight on cnn. streaming live on max. when you're the leader in disaster cleanup and restoration, how do you make like it never even happened? >> happen whoa hahahahaha! yes!

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♪ ♪ p r i z e to 42424. >> i'm jomana kenneth choi in the city of aleppo syria. and this is cnn

right. >> let's get you the very latest on our breaking news. rebel forces in syria say the capital of damascus has been liberated, claiming president bashar al-assad has been overthrown. in this video, you see prime minister mohammed al jalali being escorted by rebels in damascus. earlier, they purportedly took him to a hotel to hand over government authority. while people are celebrating in the streets, some carrying huge rebel flags. the rebels actively searching for assad, they say, who has not been seen or heard from for some days. well, a source tells cnn that the rebels are questioning syrian military officers and intelligence officials who may have knowledge about assad's movements. well, joining us now from new york is michael weiss. he is the coauthor of isis inside the army of terror. he is also the editor for the insider. it's good to have

you. and let's just get your perspective of what we are seeing on the ground there. there is a significant member. we are not looking at one sort of opposition, one rebel group here. there is a you know, there are moving parts and those parts continue to move. your assessment of what we are seeing on the ground before we talk about how the biden administration might be gaming this out at this point. >> sure. thanks for having me, becky. i mean, it's nothing short of extraordinary. this is a half century dynastic rule that simply melted away. i mean, keep in mind this is a civil war. one of the most horrific and lengthy civil wars, with hundreds of thousands dead. i began covering it in 2011 when it started as a protest movement, and it ended sort of with a whimper. i mean, damascus wasn't necessarily even militarily taken over. it was it was given over to the opposition forces which are led by this group bts. now, bts as everyone knows by now, is a

former al qaeda affiliate. and there's quite a lot of people in the west who are saying, well just how much should we emphasize the former bit? but it's clear that if you just assess what's happened in the last 13 days, beginning with the stunning capture of aleppo in what was meant to be a limited offensive that that has now essentially toppled the assad regime in the space of 13 days. um, the governance of hts has been more pragmatic than i think a lot of people were expecting christians were at church on sunday last week. it's going to be sunday. it is sunday in syria now. there probably is going to be another mass. the leader, abu mohammed al-julani, is is trying to position himself as somebody who can be a kind of nationalist figure much more so than a jihadist, even though he is absolutely still a jihadist organization but it's early days here, and i want to emphasize, you ask about the sort of makeup of of who's who hts may be the spearhead of this uh, assault or takeover,

but they are not the only actor on the ground. you've got the syrian democratic forces, which is a us proxy, basically stood up to counter and defeat isis in the jazeera in eastern syria. you've got former, quote, unquote, reconciled rebel groups, free syrian army actors who were basically brought back into a pro assad consortium of of of players. they basically took up arms and decided to rejoin the opposition. jordan will play a role as well as turkey because jordan obviously shares a border with syria, and they do not want to see any kind of islamist activity near their border. um there are also just local communities that are now kind of crawling out of their homes and out of the shadows, who had long had had a revulsion for this regime who are going to be political players. there are civil society groups. i mean, remember, we like to think that assad won this war he didn't he

it just looked that way. and the evidence is, again at the lightning speed with which his entire edifice has crumbled. i mean my god, becky, the republican guard, the fourth division, these are the most fearsome military forces in syria. and they ran off i mean, if you had told me two weeks ago that this would be the case, i would have said, you have to get your head examined so i think we really have to look at just how fundamentally weak this dictatorship was and has been for a long time understood, michael, listen we will get an opportunity to talk more in the days and weeks ahead because your analysis is extremely important to us for the time being. >> thank you very much indeed for joining us. michael weiss, for you out of new york this morning, we'll take a very short break. we are at this point. we will be back straight after this

tomorrow on cnn it's a night that's good for the soul. >> join anderson cooper and laura coates for cnn heroes, an all star tribute. >> thank you guys. >> meet the honorees and celebrate their life changing achievements. >> they're ordinary people doing extraordinary things. then find out who will be named the cnn hero of the year. >> it's really incredible. >> plus, don't miss a special tribute to this year's legacy award honoree, michael j. fox cnn heroes, an all star tribute tomorrow at 8:00 on cnn. >> your best defense against erosion and cavities is strong enamel. nothing beats it. i recommend pronamel active shield because it actively shields the enamel to defend against erosion and cavities. i think that this product is a game changer for my patients it really works. >> growing old is part of the journey. even when you have heart failure. but when he had shortness of breath, carpal tunnel syndrome, and lower back pain, we wondered, could these be warning signs of something bigger? thank goodness we called his cardiologist because

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>> today i'm doctor sanjay gupta in atlanta and this is cnn well, let's get you back to our breaking news in syria, where 50 years of authoritarian rule by the assad family has crumbled in the face of a lightning fast rebel offensive. >> i've got mina al-oraibi, the editor in chief of the national and global news organization based in abu dhabi. here with me, um, this is a remarkable time. it has to

be said for the region. you are in the break reminding me that you know, there have been remarkable times over the last 25 years. you're an iraqi for example. you know what it feels like to feel as if we're at a pivotal point in this region, only to be so sorely disappointed. and you can talk to anybody around this region iraqi, iranian syrian, lebanese who will say the same thing. let's talk about how what is going on in syria at present has such an influence, though, around the region. let's start. you know, in tehran, i want to take on tehran and baghdad, iran and iraq. at this point, there are many people doing the rounds at the moment. i've seen this on on social suggesting that, you know, this is a sort of fall of the berlin wall moment for iran's influence, what's known as its malign influence around this wider sort of middle east region. the fall of these proxies, the decapitation of both hezbollah and hamas. if you buy into that how significantly did um, you know

hurt is is iran's influence? and why does that matter so much for this region iranian officials used to boast that they now control damascus baghdad, beirut and sana'a. >> four arab capitals and definitely not the case anymore. in damascus and beirut now, i would say many iraqis in baghdad and even those in government that used to resent that sort of statement because, you know, iraq remains a sovereign country, and yemen surely. yes. the houthis control sana'a, but they're not really ruling for all yemenis and actually the internationally recognized government is sitting in aden so that's on the one hand, the next moment, as you said, it's like the fall of the berlin wall. i think we had a beginning of that with the killing of hassan nasrallah. and it change of what it meant. but also the fact that ismail haniyeh head of hamas, was

assassinated in tehran. you know, that that chipping off of iran seeming almost invincible happening in its own capital. again, this is only happened a few months ago. so definitely the aura of iran being invincible and also calling the shots in several arab capitals and countries. that moment has ended. but what comes next? and again, i think it's really important to say no one is saying that iran isn't an important player or an important country in the region, or god forbid, anyone would want to see conflict you know, inside of iran. but it's more this idea of it is not normal to have sovereign countries unable to call the shots on war and peace in their own countries. you know, ultimately, what is a nation state, number one is providing for its people number two is having a monopoly of the control of arms. and that was taken away from certain countries. tehran today will be making many calculations, but one of them is how they will be able to reconfigure their role

in the region is not just being a sponsor of either non state actors or regimes like those of bashar al-assad, anwar gargash, who was a special advisor to the president here in the uae, spoke earlier today in what is known as the manama dialogs. >> a double i, double s and gathering in in bahrain and he said the following where he ends up will be a footnote in history. he said talking about bashar al-assad. why is that significant there were questions about whether bashar al-assad and his family would come to the uae. >> now we have to remember there has been tradition really, in saudi arabia and sometimes in the uae where a former dictators will leave and it spares the country from more unrest and killing. and so doctor anwar gargash was responding to a question about that. and he said, where bashar al-assad ends up will be a

footnote in history. and i think that's actually true many people care about it syrians care about it. but the reality is the regime as it was, is over and actually, what's really interesting. a week ago, nobody knew. i don't think most people knew the name of the syrian prime minister. the fact that he stayed put out a video and said, i'm here, i'm going to try to help with this transition period. he will become more significant for this moment than where bashar al assad ends up. >> it's been fantastic having you. thank you very much indeed. couldn't have done a better than having mina al arabi with me in this hour on cnn. as we continue to cover the breaking news in syria, which has such influence for syria, syrians and this wider region, we will be back right after this you only come across an artist like luther vandross once in a lifetime. >> he was a boss from the beginning. luther said, i have a sound in my head. i got to get it out you are my shining star.

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father of the what is now it seems, former president. meanwhile, the rebels know where the prime minister is. they are escorting him in this video, apparently to a hotel to hand over authority. he said earlier that he is ready to work with, quote any leadership. the people choose. thank you for joining us for this hour. don't go away though. we have a lot more news. this story continues to provide breaking lines for us. more on our breaking news after this cnn heroes, an all star tribute tomorrow at 8:00 on cnn. >> it's the most wonderful time with verizon trade in any phone, any condition. >> for a limited time, get iphone 16 pro on us and ipad and apple watch series ten. all three on us. only on verizon. >> lowe's knows the perfect gifts. don't have to stretch your budget. that's why we

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