i didn't like the idea of getting such an old fashioned job as being stuck with dreams coming through, making money, having a son with not fulls. and so i'm seeing dots, december 13th on d, w. the business dw news line from bell and it's came over for a sod serious president, reportedly slaves the capital. as rebel forces stole into the mask, the rebels declared the city free from a subs 24 year roll announcing the start of a new era. for the syrian people, silly as prime minister says he is ready to assist with a peaceful transfer of gulf from the

god of his welcome to the program. we begin with breaking news from syrian president bush, or i'll saw that has reportedly fled the capital damascus to an unknown destination . after rebel forces entered the city, meeting only little resistance being surgeons of declared the city free from all sides rule the loss of subjects. less than 2 weeks of the loan. seeing the lightning offensive. citing senior military officials, the reuters news agency reports that the syrian army come on has notified its officers of the full of the regime. so is prime minister mohammed ali has announced he is ready to cooperate in the peaceful transfer of kyle with any new leadership chosen by the people. and a group of syrian rebels appeared on state television to announce the photo of outside the outside regime. and the liberation of damascus. the speakers identity is unknown. let's listen it a some the out of duck with the help of god,

the city of damascus has been liberated. the tyrant bush are all a side has been toppled on all the on just the detain. parsons and the regimes prisons have been released from damascus operations room calls upon the fighters to preserve all the properties of the free theory and stays long. live a free and independent syria for all syrians of all believes these are the from all of these developments. i'm uh, drawing in this to do about it. pause. it gives you a honda is who was actually born in a level and it goes it that's you expected this, the, this loan, blah, the civil war. and now that this take over by the rebel forces. so quickly got more than 13 years of war and for to all the over in less than 2 weeks. no, nobody, i think could have seen this coming. even the rebels themselves,

when they 1st started their offensive, said they were surprised by how fast things were moving. of course, in the past few days, the writing has been on the wall. we saw when they took over how much that homes was next and then the mask is. so by then it was clear. but before that, i don't think anyone could have seen this coming body of the people that you talk to in, in, in syria, your family and all the people. you know that what are they say? honestly, it's been hard to get in touch with people today. you know, most of syria woke up today to the news. everyone's phones have been going off with congratulations messages. so, so far there's a lot of optimism. there's still some caution and there's still fear of the unknown . but mostly it's an emotional moment for syrians and people are finally glad that this fear barrier is broken and they can finally speak freely. and yeah, very understandably so. so what can we expect to come in the next few days

before we get into the government for me, the information of a new government and the celebrations in the next few days. because of all the prisoners that have been released, political prisoners who have been in prison for decades and all the missing people . so in the next few days, we're going to see a lot of these interviews. a lot of the brutality and the horrors of the side regime will come to light. there will be a lot of pain for syrians to reconcile with before they can move on. but as well as that we'll see, soldiers have been conscripted forcefully for 13 years. now go back home to their families. refugees who have been out of the country for many years as well. more than 12000000 syrian people have been displaced in this war. all of them will be trying to see how they can get back home, see their families for the 1st time. it will be a lot of emotional moments in the next few days. aside was supported

by a lot of the minorities like christians like muslims, and, and drew's. what can, these minorities expect now? repercussions so far we have not really seen any signs of that the rebels h d, as the leading faction, which they are an extremist group. and they are classified by the us as a tear organization, but they have changed their stands in recent days with this offensive, and part of that can be today in recognition later on by the international community. so in recent days we've seen these groups as well, like you mentioned, the drew's galloway's assets loyalists turn on asset themselves. there's been protest, and before the rebels themselves got into damascus, the drews from the south that took some parts of suburbs. so in a way it seems like everyone turned on asset in his final gnome is and that they

could be forgiven for all things in the past. even in love talk. yeah. his loyalist base, they toppled his statute without a single bullet being fired. well let's hope it stays that way because yeah, or how does the thank you very much. a little earlier i spoke to roger shanahan is a middle east down list and a former army officer. and so the one in south lebanon, and in syria, i asked him how surprising it is for him that all sorts of losing him is of, as well, certainly very surprising and saw myself so. so most common tied is an ration from countries as well. the speed with which the saw dr. shane failed in essentially 10 or 11 died from the time that the revolution started is extraordinary. most people expected a much bigger fight to be put up and this to be a bloody campaign, but it turned out to be quite the opposite. now,

why did the army not find the rebels? apparently, it was, was a subs military backing a maybe not a strong enough, as we all thought well is probably several reasons for this. uh, uh, the ideas lead a coalition who are the opposition? i'd spent months in preparation and also i training for this day 5 better equipped than i have been in the past. i. there were essentially a semi conventional i mean, at the moment, um and i were up against the side military forces who had been so laid out. i would use the logic conscript ami um and there's probably 2 of them and see if 1st of all it's a context of wills and essentially a deep uh, side. military forces were not willing to fight and die. so they cause whereas the opposition were and the other aspect is very early on the opposition gained by

mentioned many military times when she gain my mention and exploit that my main to them, it's very difficult to stop it and that's about what we. so what's the, um, a decisive moment and if so, what was it? well it's and everything is uh, create in retrospect. and i think it that we look back at will probably say very early on the phone with a lift, but not just it's full. but the speed with which it failed was real, indicated that i, that the assad regime is not willing to expend the resources to stay and fight, or each military was incapable of staying and fighting. and once it fails, i quickly that allowed the opposition to build up my mansion and to base our reputation, their advances that decided right shame was unable to make decisions quickly enough to stop them at all. so i meant that it's external back is in russia and around

what i will to react quickly enough. and probably given the lack of funding, the serial military decided that they wouldn't react to me and is that there isn't that leaves straight to my next question. also i'd have powerful back cuz with russia and, and the ron was, was the speed of the rebel advanced, decisive said, rush signed, iran decided not to help all where they just busy on all the front bows. combination of, uh, several, uh, issues as far as obviously russia, uh has um, it's probably just entirely on crime. certainly got its forces in syria and its ability to reinforced eyes were limited, but also the spade with which events and follows it takes a while to react. you'll support forces to travel to syria

and the speed with which the syrian forces were collapsing. you would imagine bite into it, ron and d must go uh, rational voices said that the space with which otherwise your name was collapse. it was unlikely that there forces good stuff that i'm sorry. there was level a point in trying a good money after bad. so one of the better time. now, militarily, damascus has now full and what do you expect to happen next? so i want to say easy saying with the opposition, is there not a? well, that's a lot of diverse range of actors. they're not a rag tag organization and they have a civil administrators element that spies to follow up quickly behind the elements. so that's what we're saying at the moment they tried to calm the population, the easiest social media is being very professional in terms of spreading

a message that of cause. and i think quite careful and engaging with the rump syrian government to make sure that the functions of state uh, in terms of the infrastructure provided to the population, continues. the last thing that the opposition group wants is to inherit a broken system so that i can keep it going as functionally as possible for as long as possible that makes the transition much smoother. and it gives the population more confidence in the opposition. so i think that's what we're saying, the early days of what we're saying at the moment. and final question briefly, if you can, wherever his bus or our last saw at very good questions this each pull it as a dollar question. nobody quite know is it might well be that given a spade of events using some interim location where somebody is getting a short term a solemn, until a long term solution can be sorted out and perhaps varies in very short time.

doesn't what that probably 9 at the moment. so the short answer is, i don't think anybody knows publicly i'm at least let's watch a sun and thank you very much for sharing your expertise with us. or and i always heard a little about them already, but the who all these anti government forces in syria and what do they want? revel groups in syria are diverse, but this lightning offensive was spirit by the h t. s group. it's a coalition in itself, including many is less than 2 hardest fighters syrian rebels celebrating after entering elect the country 2nd largest city. defensive to the world by surprise. even though some report suggest they had been planning the new push against the assad regime for a while. they weren't,

even though the insurgents all led by g, had his group hired to, to, hey, i assume known by the initials h t s the most powerful rebel function in syria. a don't made up some searching groups at at least 60000 well trained fighters. they, goldman, it look province, an area of at least 3000000 people in the northwest, which is part of the around so 2 percent of syrian territory notes controlled by president bush, all assad h t s was founded by islam is rebel abu muhammad, all galani image from a group known as almost roof from the te, set up in 2011 in the early stages of serious war. back then under galandes leadership, they were a direct affiliates of all kind of reports. and we broke ranks with the group in 2017 to become the new organization now known as

h t. s. they've long been designated a terrorist organization by the u. n. and the us. and they've also been accused of human rights abuses and areas they control. including executions, the persecution of religious minorities and women are they more recently the claims have disavowed terrorism and are trying to present a more moderate face? you're watching dw, and you see as a reminder of our top story, this, our serious president bush. i last saw that has a flat, the capitol demoss goes to an unknown destination. officer rebel forces entered the city to limited resistance. again, surgeons have declared the city free from assaults, decades law and rule best. then 2 weeks off the launching a lightning offensive in the north of the country.

and that's it from me and the news team a don't get, i don't go away. coming up next, we have a documentary looking at a city in mexico where communal life is run by a group of women in berlin. thanks for watching. the via humming does not get drunk. why do go to the tasteful waves, squeeze our bodies? how much do we need to put a stop hans praying for help find beyond fis gets much on dw science. outtake talk channel.