Austria will support Syrians who want to return home after the downfall of the Assad regime, Karl Nehammer, the chancellor, said today.
“The fall of the Assad regime is changing the overall situation in Syria. The country now needs its citizens,” Nehammer posted on X. “We will support everyone, who wants to return to their homeland.”
Yesterday the Austrian government said it had paused the processing of asylum applications by Syrians, one of several European countries to do so.
What does the fall of Damascus mean for Britons like Shamima Begum?
Shamima Begum left the UK for Syria when she was 15 and has been stripped of her UK nationality
The fall of Assad has raised concerns over the fate of British jihadists held in camps and prisons in Syria, creating uncertainty about the UK’s security.
About 70 British nationals remain detained in Kurdish-controlled areas in northeastern Syria after the collapse of Islamic State’s self-declared caliphate in 2019.
While many political prisoners have been freed following Assad’s downfall, no British Isis fighters are thought to be among them.
• Read in full: What does the fall of Damascus mean for British jihadists in Syrian prisons?
In pictures: Syrians celebrate fall of Assad regime
Syrians gathered yesterday in Damascus after the end of 61 years of Baath Party rule
EMIN SANSAR/GETTY IMAGES
UK concerned over potential return of British jihadists
Any potential return of British jihadists to the UK is “a matter of great concern”, a Home Office minister has said, amid worries about the fallout of the collapse of the Assad regime.
Dame Angela Eagle told Times Radio that intelligence services are “keeping a very, very close eye” on the situation on the ground, and that the UK is in touch with allies.
Asked about the prospect of jihadists who are British citizens returning to the UK, Eagle said: “Rest assured that the intelligence services are keeping a very close eye on what’s going on and we’re in contact with all of our allies to see how this pans out.”
Israel denies advancing beyond buffer zone
An Israeli military spokesman has denied that its forces had advanced beyond the buffer zone in the occupied Golan Heights and into Syrian territory, despite Syrian sources reporting that the incursion had reached up to 25km from Damascus, the capital.
“It’s not true, the forces have not left the buffer zone,” the spokesman said.
Over 300 Israeli strikes recorded since Assad’s fall
Regional security sources said that Israeli airstrikes continued against military installations across the country
ORHAN QEREMAN/REUTERS
A monitor of Syria’s war has claimed it has recorded more than 300 Israeli strikes since rebels toppled Assad over the weekend.
“The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has been able to document around 310 strikes” carried out by “Israeli warplanes” since the announcement of the fall of Assad on Sunday morning, the monitor said.
Listen: What risks does Syria’s new leadership bring?
Iran denies being weakened by Assad’s fall
The commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards has claimed Tehran has not been weakened after the fall of its ally Assad in Syria, Iranian media reported.
“We have not been weakened and Iran’s power has not diminished,” Hossein Salami was quoted as telling members of parliament in a closed session. Iran and Russia had propped up Assad’s rule since Syria’s civil war erupted in 2011 and Tehran deployed its Revolutionary Guards to the country.
“The overthrow of the Zionist regime [Israel] is not off the agenda,” Salami said in the session which met to discuss the latest developments in Syria. Salami said no Iranian forces remained in Syria.
Saudi Arabia condemns Israeli incursion
Saudi Arabia has condemned Israel’s incursion into a buffer zone in Syria following the overthrow of Assad.
The Saudi foreign ministry said in a statement today that “the assaults carried out by the Israeli occupation government, including the seizure of the buffer zone in the Golan Heights, and the targeting of Syrian territory confirm Israel’s continued violation of the principles of international law and its determination to sabotage Syria’s chances of restoring its security, stability and territorial integrity”.
Rescuers end prison search
Rescuers search for secret compartments in Sednaya prison
ANAGHA SUBHASH NAIR/GETTY IMAGES
The White Helmets, The Syrian civil defence group, has called a halt to its search operations at Sednaya prison. The group was investigating reports from survivors that people were still being held in a network of underground cells.
The White Helmets said there was “no evidence of undiscovered secret cells or basements”. The group said the operation involved five teams, including two K9 (trained police dog) units.
“The teams inspected all entrances, exits, ventilation shafts, sewage systems, water pipes, electrical wiring, and surveillance camera cables. Despite these extensive efforts, no hidden or sealed areas were identified.”
More than 30,000 detainees were believed to have been executed or died due to torture, lack of medical care, or starvation at the notorious prison, nicknamed the “human slaughterhouse”, between 2011 and 2018.
Israel says troops were deployed to strengthen border defence
Israel’s military says it is taking “proactive” steps to defend its border with Syria.
Israeli troops have been deployed inside a buffer zone, an area previously demilitarised under a 50-year-old ceasefire agreement, and have also taken over abandoned Syrian army posts beyond the zone.
IDF troops near the buffer zone in the Golan Heights
REX
In a statement released yesterday, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said that troops “took steps to proactively ensure the defence of the Golan Heights in light of internal events in Syria”, adding that the military was “conducting defence activities in the field to prevent any threat”.
Israel says the move to seize the zone and the area beyond it, including the Syrian side of Mount Hermon, was triggered by a security incident over the weekend which led to armed gunmen breaching a UN peacekeeping base.
Israel’s defence minister said the country will establish a “security zone” beyond the buffer area in order to prevent Iran from smuggling weapons through Syria into Lebanon.
Rebel leader pledges to pursue war criminals
Syria’s rebel leader has vowed to pursue former senior government officials responsible for torture and war crimes.
“We will not hesitate to hold accountable the criminals, murderers, security and army officers involved in torturing the Syrian people,” Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, the rebel leader, said today in a statement on Telegram.
“We will offer rewards to anyone who provides information about senior army and security officers involved in war crimes,” Jolani added.
The de facto leader of more than 23 million Syrians said the incoming authorities would also seek the return of officials who have fled abroad.
Jolani held talks yesterday with Mohammed Ghazi al-Jalali, the outgoing prime minister, “to co-ordinate a transfer of power that guarantees the provision of services” to Syria’s people, according to an earlier statement on Telegram.
Israeli military incursion advances into Syria
An Israeli military incursion into southern Syria has reached about 25km southwest of Damascus, the capital, two regional security sources and one Syrian security source have told Reuters.
Smoke rises after airstrikes in Damascus on Tuesday morning
OMAR HAJ KADOUR/GETTY IMAGES
The Syrian security source said Israeli troops had reached Qatana, which is 10km into Syrian territory, east of a demilitarised zone separating the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights from Syria. The Israeli military declined to comment.
Israel captured the Golan Heights in 1967 and later annexed it. The entire international community, except for the United States, considers the plateau to be occupied Syrian territory.
Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, announced on Sunday that the 50-year-old ceasefire agreement with Syria had collapsed. He said Syrian troops had abandoned their positions, necessitating the Israeli takeover as a “temporary defensive position”.