Thousands flock to Damascus' iconic Umayyad Mosque to celebrate 'new Syria'

Thousands of Syrians converged on a landmark Damascus mosque for Friday prayers, waving flags and chanting — a sight unimaginable just days ago before the ouster of Bashar al Assad.

At the capital's famed Umayyad Mosque, men, women and children gathered to celebrate on the first Friday prayers since Assad's ouster, later streaming into the city streets and squares.

"We are gathering because we're happy Syria has been freed, we're happy to have been liberated from the prison in which we lived," said Nour Thi al Ghina, 38.

"This is the first time we have converged in such big numbers and the first time we are seeing such an event," she said, beaming with joy.

"We never expected this to happen."

Exhilarated crowds chanted "One, one, one, the Syrian people is one!" on Friday.

Road to Damascus

Dozens of pictures of people who were disappeared or detained in Assad's prisons hung on the mosque's outer walls, the phone numbers of relatives inscribed on the images.

Omar al Khaled, 23, said he had rushed from northwestern Idlib to see the capital for the first time in his life.

"It was my dream to come to Damascus," the tailor said.

"I can't describe my feelings. Our morale is very high and we hope that Syria will head towards a better future," he said, adding: "People were stifled... but now the doors have opened to us."

Thousands flocked to the nearby Umayyad Square, raising a huge flag on its landmark sword monument and chanting.

"Let's not discuss details that might separate us now and focus only on what brings us together: our hatred for Bashar al Assad," said Amina Maarawi, 42, a Muslim preacher.

Mohammed al Saad, 32, was overjoyed. "We've been waiting 13 years for this," he said. "We've come to get work started."