Assad says he had no plans to leave Syria but was evacuated by Russians
The comments are the first by the ousted leader since he was overthrown by insurgent groups.
Ousted Syrian leader Bashar Assad says he had no plans to leave the country after the fall of Damascus a week ago but the Russian military evacuated him after their base in western Syria came under attack.
The comments are the first by Mr Assad since he was overthrown by insurgent groups.
Mr Assad said in a statement on his Facebook page that he left Damascus on the morning of December 8, hours after insurgents stormed the capital.
He said he left in coordination with Russian allies to the Russian base in the coastal province of Latakia, where he planned to keep fighting.
Mr Assad said that after the Russian base came under attack by drones, the Russians decided to move him on the night of December 8 to Russia.
“I did not leave the country as part of a plan as it was reported earlier,” Mr Assad said.
“At no point during these events did I consider stepping down or seeking refuge nor was such proposal made by any individual or party,” Mr Assad said in the English text of his statement.
“The only course of action was to continue fighting against the terrorist onslaught.”
In Damascus, residents dismissed his comments and some said he had abandoned Syria’s people long ago.
“Is he going to run away from us? He still won’t be able to run away from God,” said one resident, Moataz al-Ahmed, as children stepped on a fallen statue of Mr Assad’s father, Hafez, who had begun the family’s half-century rule.
The spokesman for the transitional government’s political department said in an interview Monday that “the Assad regime is finished with no return” and Russia “should reconsider its presence on Syrian territory as well as its interests”.
The spokesman, Obeida Arnaout, said Syria has entered a new phase that will be open to the world, and the new government is looking to build good relations with its neighbours and beyond.
He also called on the US and other countries to reconsider the designation of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the main rebel group and a former al Qaida affiliate, as a terrorist organisation, calling it “not right and not accurate”.
Meanwhile, a war monitor said Israeli airstrikes early on Monday hit missile warehouses in Syria and called it the “most violent strikes” since 2012.
Israel has been pounding what it says are military sites in Syria after the dramatic collapse of Mr Assad’s rule, wiping out air defences and most of the arsenal of the former Syrian army.
Israeli troops have also seized a border buffer zone, sparking condemnation, with critics accusing Israel of violating the 1974 ceasefire and possibly exploiting the chaos in Syria for a land grab.
