Russia requests UN Security Council meeting on Syria

The UN Security Council is to convene for an emergency session on Monday after Syrian rebels declared President Bashar al-Assad’s ouster and seized control of Damascus on Sunday.

The meeting, requested by Russia, will take place behind closed doors, diplomatic sources told dpa.

Syrians were facing a new political reality on Sunday after rebels took the capital Damascus, ending the two-decade regime of al-Assad, who was reported to have fled the country for Moscow.

A rebel alliance led by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) launched a surprise offensive in north-western Syria in late November, then quickly seized territory from pro-Assad forces as they moved toward Damascus. (dpa/NAN)