INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
he be evacuated to Russia.An Islamist-led rebel alliance, led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), launched a lightning offensive from its
8.Five former officials previously told AFP that hours before rebel forces seized Damascus and toppled Assad's government, the former Syrian
president was already out of the country.The officials said that the night before, Assad had even asked his close adviser to prepare a
(HTS), the group that led his overthrow, has also been proscribed as a terrorist organization by the U.S
and other Western governments.With its roots in a former branch of Al-Qaeda in Syria, HTS broke with the jihadist group in 2016 and has
sought to soften its image.In recent days, both the U.S
have established contact with the group, while the UN has said it could remove HTS from its terrorist list if the post-Assad leadership
proves its social and political inclusivity.
