17 Comments
User's avatar
BARRY GANDER's avatar

Hope you are right! Thanks for covering this so well...

Expand full comment
Shankar Narayan's avatar

Rebels have reached the suburbs of Damascus. It looks over.

Expand full comment
BARRY GANDER's avatar

WOW!!! Nice call, from your earlier texts!

Now, can you predict Donald Trump's demise? LOL

Looking forward to your next piece...all over for Assad, probably. Could end up in Dubai with the Russian oligarchs...

Expand full comment
Robert Honeyman's avatar

I saw on Bluesky that the Assad family is in the UAE.

Expand full comment
Shankar Narayan's avatar

Not sure where he is. But he is clearly not in Syria.

Expand full comment
BARRY GANDER's avatar

He's evidently in the UAE! Nice call!

Expand full comment
Craig Ewing's avatar

The ripple effects resulting from Assad's fall will take years to fully fan out. I look forward to your reports, Shankar.

Expand full comment
Donald Sinclair Richardson's avatar

Great coverage Shankar. If Assad and all his relations have left, is it likely they left on a Russian military flight and wouldn’t that be “fair game?”

Expand full comment
Shankar Narayan's avatar

The russians were blocked from reaching Assads forces in Damascus and Homs. Assad ran on his own. Russians ran on their own.

Expand full comment
Donald Sinclair Richardson's avatar

So it was cohesive, good to know.

Expand full comment
Markus Rose's avatar

Glad to discover your highly recommended page. I hope you will continue to keep us informed and tell us what to think when they inevitably start slaughtering the Syrian Christians, Alawites, Druze and Yezidis.

Expand full comment
Shankar Narayan's avatar

Nice.

'inevitably'. ?

It was a breathtaking assault for 14 days. Why hasn't the 'inevitably' happened yet then.?Rebels even allowed Assads army to lay down their arms and surrender. It was a key aprt of their strategy to win without fighting. One look at the map will tell you that all the different factions are fighting with a common goal.

'inevitably'?

Expand full comment
Markus Rose's avatar

Every other Arab spring democratic revolution has led to minority groups especially Christians getting slaughtered. Go ahead and shrug your shoulders.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/in-post-arab-spring-egypt-muslim-attacks-on-christians-are-rising/2016/11/13/f50a18e2-84fc-11e6-b57d-dd49277af02f_story.html

Expand full comment
Alexandra Barcus's avatar

Hurray! Stop the migrant crisis. Remove Assad. What wonderful news. Thank you.

Expand full comment
Alexandra Barcus's avatar

No. But the pressure to accept so many people from serious settings like Syria where they run a high probability of dying by living there will be eased. It is the numbers from a few awful fights that have made things so hard. A country should accept refugees, but getting them settled in as they should be is tough.

Expand full comment
Markus Rose's avatar

So Europe will now be able to send a lot of Syrians back? Nah!

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
Dec 8
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
Shankar Narayan's avatar

Yes. Rebels have taken control of damascus. The region next to the sea, where the Russian bases are, is the only one left. Rebels factions have not moved in yet. Waiting for the Russian forces to leave on their own. Not a bad move, because why waste lives fighting, when getting rid of Assads army will give you the win and win will force Russians to leave on their own.

Expand full comment