'It is a turning point for the region,' says Golani to crowd in Damascus following Assad's ouster

Record ID: 1884620

  • Title: 'It is a turning point for the region,' says Golani to crowd in Damascus following Assad's ouster
  • Date: 8th December 2024
  • Summary: DAMASCUS, SYRIA (DECEMBER 8, 2024) (REUTERS) SYRIAN REBEL COMMANDER, ABU MOHAMMED AL-GOLANI, WALKING AMONG CHEERFUL CROWDS, ENTERING UMAYYAD MOSQUE, SHAKING HANDS WITH PEOPLE CROWD CHANTING INSIDE THE MOSQUE PEOPLE HOLDING PHONES, FILMING GOLANI VARIOUS OF GOLANI WALKING THROUGH CROWD, PEOPLE FILMING HIM (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SYRIAN REBEL COMMANDER, ABU MOHAMMED AL-GOLANI,
  • Embargoed: 22nd December 2024 17:18
  • Keywords: AL-ASSAD DAMASCUS GOLANI SYRIA
  • Location: DAMASCUS, SYRIA
  • City: DAMASCUS, SYRIA
  • Country: Syria
  • Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Middle East
  • Reuters ID: LVA001566908122024RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Syrian rebel commander Abu Mohammed al-Golani was greeted by cheering crowds on Sunday (December 8) as he entered Damascus’ historic Umayyad Mosque, following the rebels’ declaration of President Bashar al-Assad's ouster.
    Speaking inside the mosque, Golani described the victory as "a turning point for the region," accusing Assad of having "handed Syria over to Iranian ambitions", while spreading "sectarianism and corruption."
    As the commander of al Qaeda's franchise in the Syrian civil war, Golani was a shadowy figure who kept out of the public eye, even when his group became the most powerful faction fighting Assad.
    Today, he is the most recognisable of Syria's triumphant insurgents, having gradually stepped into the limelight since severing ties to al Qaeda in 2016, rebranding his group and emerging as the de facto ruler of rebel-held northwestern Syria.
    The transformation has been showcased since rebels led by Golani's Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), formerly known as the Nusra Front, swept through the nation and declared they had ousted Assad on Sunday after seizing the capital Damascus.
    (Production: Mahmoud Hassano, Hamuda Hassan, Dina Sakr)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2024. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register