Syrian spring arrives in winter: 'tyrant' falls, prisoners freed

61 years of Syria’s Baath regime have come to an end.

Sixty-one years of Baath Party rule in Syria, which began in 1963 with a coup, have ended as opposition forces seized control of the capital Damascus.

The Arab Socialist Baath Party came to power through a coup in March 1963. In 1970, Hafez al-Assad, the father of Syria’s most recent ruler Bashar al-Assad, consolidated power through an internal party coup and assumed the presidency in 1971.

Bashar al-Assad succeeded his father after he died in 2000, continuing Baath Party rule.

Amid rumours that Assad fled Damascus by plane for the city of Homs, his current fate and whereabouts are unclear.

The Syrian opposition has announced in a televised statement that they have freed Damascus and overthrown President Bashar al Assad's 24-year regime, adding that all prisoners have been released.

The opposition said it has "toppled 'tyrant' Bashar al-Assad."

Protesters rose against the regime late on Saturday in Damascus neighbourhoods, while regime forces pulled out from critical sites such as the defence ministry, interior ministry and the international airport.

With the entry of protesters into crucial areas, the regime had lost most of its control over the capital.

Prisoners in the Sednaya Prison in Damascus, known for its association with the regime and notorious torture practices, were freed by demonstrators who stormed the facility.

Opposition forces had taken control of most of Aleppo’s city centre and established dominance across Idlib province by November 30.

Following intense clashes on Thursday, opposition groups took control of the Hama city centre from regime forces.

Anti-regime groups seized several settlements in the strategically important Homs province and began to advance towards the Syrian capital.

On Friday, Syrian opposition groups took control of Daraa in southern Syria near the Jordanian border.

Earlier on Saturday, they seized control of Suwayda province in the south and local opposition forces in Quneitra gained control of the provincial capital.