Syrian rebels enter Damascus: everything we know so far | Syria

Syria’s rebel forces, led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group (HTS), have entered the capital Damascus, completing a stunning advance across the country.

Here’s everything we know so far:

• rebel forces say they have conquered Damascus. A video circulating online shows Syrian forces taking off their uniforms on the streets of the capital. The insurgents announced that they have begun releasing prisoners from Sednaya Prison, a notorious detention center near Damascus. Shootings could be heard throughout the capital.

• There was no immediate official statement from the Syrian government. Pro-government radio station Sham FM reported that Damascus airport had been evacuated and all flights had been suspended. The insurgents also announced that they had entered the notorious Saydnaya military prison north of the capital and “freed our prisoners” there.

• Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has reportedly left Damascus. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor says he has left the country. The Observatory’s chief, Rami Abdel Rahman, said: “Assad left Syria through Damascus International Airport before army security forces left the facility.” The Syrian president has not been seen in public for days. The Guardian could not independently confirm the reports.

• If Damascus falls to opposition forces, the government would only have control of two of the 14 provincial capitals: Latakia and Tartus.

• Syrian rebel commander Hassan Abdul-Ghani said early Sunday that insurgents had “completely liberated” Syria’s central city of Homs. There were reports of celebrations in the city and the removal of pictures of President Bashar al-Assad. A statue of Hafez al-Assad, father of Bashar al-Assad, was also torn down by a large crowd in the city. Government troops had previously withdrawn from Homs.

• The loss of Homs was a serious blow to Assad. It lies at a key junction between the capital Damascus and the Syrian coastal provinces of Latakia and Tartus – the Syrian leader’s base and the site of a strategic Russian naval base.

• Donald Trump said the US should avoid military involvement in Syriaaccording to the Associated Press. The president-elect’s first detailed comments on the rebels’ dramatic advance came Saturday via his social media website. “This is not our fight,” he wrote in a social media post.

• UN special envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen called on Saturday for urgent talks in Geneva to ensure an “orderly political transition”. Speaking to reporters at the annual Doha Forum in Qatar, he said the situation in Syria was changing by the minute. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, whose country is Assad’s main international backer, said he felt “compassion for the Syrian people.”