Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has left the capital Damascus on a plane, Reuters reported, as rebels entered the city and residents reported heavy gunfire. 

Assad’s destination is unknown, the report said, citing two unidentified senior army officers. The government said Saturday that Assad was continuing to run the country from the capital as speculation swirled regarding his whereabouts.

The rebel group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham said on Telegram that they have entered Damascus, Agence France-Presse reported. The Syrian military and security forces have left Damascus airport, AFP said, citing the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which tracks the conflict. 

• Also read: Syrian rebels seize fourth city, close in on Homs in threat to Assad’s rule

Assad had lost authority over large swaths of the northwest of the country in the past week as opposition fighters made a shock advance out of Idlib province. They first captured Aleppo, one of the biggest cities in Syria, and then advanced on Hama. 

Early on Sunday, AFP cited the rebel group as saying that they had captured Homs, a city just a two-hour drive away from Assad’s palace in Damascus. 

The rapid collapse of the Syrian government’s defenses has taken Russia, Iran, the US and Israel all by surprise. In 2015, Russia and Iran came to Assad’s aid and helped turn the tide in Syria’s war, but both Tehran and Moscow are now stretched by conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine.

That makes it unclear if Assad can beat back the assault on Damascus and ensure his government’s survival. 

The Syrian conflict, which began in 2011, has left between 300,000 to 500,000 people dead, more than 7 million internally displaced and at least 6.4 million as refugees, according to United Nations agencies and Syrian organisations.

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