‘Mother of all battles!’ Syrian rebels close in on Homs as Assad’s family ‘flees’ to Russia
Syrian rebel forces have closed in on the city of Homs while reports say Bashar al-Assad’s family have fled to Russia.
The Syrian president’s family allegedly escaped to Russia in the days following the militant offensive.
Meanwhile, jihadists from the group Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS) have captured the towns of Rastan and Talbiseh, putting them within three miles of Homs.
According to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the battle of Homs will decide the future of Syria.
Rami Abdulrahman, the founder of the Observatory, said: “The battle of Homs is the mother of all battles and will decide who will rule Syria.”
According to pro-Assad Sham FM, the rebels entered the towns with no resistance.
This came after they captured Syria’s fourth largest city Hama, causing thousands of residents to flee towards Damascus and the coastal region.
State news agency SANA quoted an anonymous military source saying Russian and Syrian air forces were attacking the rebels in Hama and had killed dozens of them.
According to an associate fellow at Chatham House, Syria’s future lies in the hands of Russia.
Dr Neil Quilliam claimed that whether Assad’s regime falls depends on Russia and whether it to offer support.
He said HTS has spent the last four years training and equipping itself for the offensive, whilst Assad’s military was “poorly resourced, poorly trained and demotivated”.
“Damascus is clearly in its sights and unless Russia comes in at the last minute, and given that the Russian embassy has told Russians to evacuate the country immediately, it seems that the regime may well fall,” he added.
He added that he believes there will be a “longer bloodier battle than we’ve seen at present,” and thinks the Assad regime will fall.
The Russian Embassy in Damascus issued a warning telling Russian citizens to flee the country amidst the ongoing attacks.
It said: “The Russian Embassy in Damascus reminds Russian citizens living in the SAR [Syrian Arab Republic] of the possibility of leaving the country using commercial flights through operating airports.”
The UN has reported that 280,000 people have been displaced due to the offensive launched on November 27.