Assad's last hours in Syria – deception, desperation and flight to Moscow

Bashar al-Assad confided in almost no one about his plans to leave Syria as his rule came to an end.

According to a Reuters report, more than a hundred people close to Assad are said to have confirmed these claims.

He found refuge in Moscow, which has always been one of the most important allies. He left his associates at the mercy of fate.

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Hours before fleeing to Moscow, Assad assured 30 military and security commanders at the Defense Ministry that Russian support was on the way and urged ground forces to be patient. This is what one of the commanders who participated in the meeting said reuters.

Most agency sources requested anonymity to speak freely about sensitive matters. His associates, diplomats, members of the security services and senior Iranian officials spoke about the former president.

Last Saturday, Assad announced at the presidential office that he would be returning home. Instead, he headed to the airport. He asked media adviser Buthaina Shaaban to come to him so they could prepare a speech together. When he arrived, he realized that there was no one there.

"Assad neither tried to fight to the end nor called his soldiers. He left supporters to face their own fate,” said Nadim Houri, executive director of the Arab Reform Initiative, a regional think tank.

The agency was unable to contact Assad in Moscow, where he received political asylum. According to the testimony of people close to the former Syrian leader, he did everything to expand his power while no one could guess that he was planning to leave the country.

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Assad's family has had close ties to Moscow for many years. According to a report by the non-governmental organization Global Witness, the Assad family has invested in real estate since 2012, such as the "City of Capitals" skyscrapers in Moscow. The organization found that by 2019, the Assad family had purchased apartments in two Moscow skyscrapers with a total value of at least $40 million.

Assad's wife Asma reportedly arrived in Moscow with her children days before the regime fell in Damascus. Bashar al-Assad joined the family after escaping. /Telegraph/