In pictures: Syrians celebrate end of half a century of Assad family rule

In pictures: Syrians celebrate end of half a century of Assad family rule

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The streets of Damascus and other Syrian cities echoed with celebratory gunfire on Sunday after rebel forces eased into the capital city and the Assad regime abruptly collapsed. Joyful crowds waved the three-starred Syrian revolutionary flag that was adopted during the Arab Spring uprising, before a brutal crackdown plunged the country into a devastating civil war. 

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Across the country, people pulled down statues of Bashar al-Assad and his father Hafez, who founded the family dynasty in 1971. In Damascus, residents gathered to pray at mosques and to celebrate in squares, chanting slogans against the deposed president. Others gleefully ransacked the presidential palace and residence after Assad and his family vanished, reportedly to find refuge with their ally Russia. 

  • Celebrations in Damascus and other Syrian cities

Syrian opposition fighters celebrate in Damascus, waving the flag of the country's anti-Assad opposition.
Syrian opposition fighters celebrate in Damascus, waving the flag of the country’s anti-Assad opposition. © Omar Sanadiki, AP

An armed woman flashes the V for victory sign as Syrian Kurds celebrate Assad's fall in the city of Qamishli in the country's Kurdish-majority northeast.
An armed woman flashes the V for victory sign as Syrian Kurds celebrate Assad’s fall in the city of Qamishli in the country’s Kurdish-majority northeast. © Delil Souleiman, AFP

  • Fireworks and tears of joy in Homs

People celebrate in the main square of Homs, Syria's third-largest city, which was taken by rebel forces shortly before the fall of Damascus.
People celebrate in the main square of Homs, Syria’s third-largest city, which was taken by rebel forces shortly before the fall of Damascus. © Aref Tammawi, AFP

Residents of Homs, a city blighted by fierce fighting during the country's civil war, celebrate news of the fall of Damascus.
Residents of Homs, a city blighted by fierce fighting during the country’s civil war, celebrate news of the fall of Damascus. © Ghaith Alsayed, AP

Syrians displaced by war make an emotional return to their hometown Homs after the city's capture by rebel forces.
Syrians displaced by war make an emotional return to their hometown Homs after the city’s capture by rebel forces. © Muhammad Haj Kadour, AFP

  • Assad statues toppled

An opposition fighter steps on a broken bust of the late Syrian President Hafez al-Assad, Bashar's father, in Damascus.
An opposition fighter steps on a broken bust of the late Syrian President Hafez al-Assad, Bashar’s father, in Damascus. © Hussein Malla, AP

Syrian Kurds gather around a destroyed statue of Hafez al-Assad in the northeastern city of Qamishli as they celebrate news of the fall of Damascus.
Syrian Kurds gather around a destroyed statue of Hafez al-Assad in the northeastern city of Qamishli as they celebrate news of the fall of Damascus. © Delil Souleiman, AFP

  • Presidential palace, Assad home looted

A Syrian opposition fighter sits inside an office at the presidential palace in Damascus, which was vacated by Assad before the rebels captured the capital.
A Syrian opposition fighter sits inside an office at the presidential palace in Damascus, which was vacated by Assad before the rebels captured the capital. © Omar Sanadiki, AP

A man tries to take a lamp as people search through the ransacked private residence of Syria's deposed president in Damascus.
A man tries to take a lamp as people search through the ransacked private residence of Syria’s deposed president in Damascus. © Hussein Malla, AP

  • A day of joy for exiled Syrians

Syrians living in Turkey hold opposition flags as they celebrate Assad's fall in Istanbul.
Syrians living in Turkey hold opposition flags as they celebrate Assad’s fall in Istanbul. © Umit Bektas, Reuters

A woman sheds a tear as Syrians reacts celebrate the regime's fall in Majdal Shams, a Druze village in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
A woman sheds a tear as Syrians celebrate the regime’s fall in Majdal Shams, a Druze village in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. © Stoyan Nenov, Reuters

Syrians gather at Oranienplatz square in Berlin, Germany, waving opposition flags.
Syrians gather at Oranienplatz square in Berlin, Germany, waving opposition flags. © Annegret Hilse, Reuters

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