According to the Russian government, he has directed a peaceful transfer of power in the civil war-hit nation.

"As a result of negotiations between Bashar al-Assad and several participants in the armed conflict on the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic, he made the decision to resign from the presidency and leave the country, giving instructions for a peaceful transfer of power. Russia was not involved in these negotiations," the Russian Foreign Ministry stated in a Telegram post as quoted by Sputnik news agency.

What happened in Syria?

Bashar al-Assad, Syria’s President who is widely seen as a dictator who ruled the country with an iron hand but was also hailed as one of the last secular Arab leaders by many, has fled to an unknown destination as Islamist-led rebel groups advanced at lightning speed, media reports said.

According to a statement on Sunday, rebel forces in Syria declared Damascus “free,” claiming Bashar al-Assad has fled the capital, reported BBC.

“We declare the city of Damascus free from the tyrant Bashar al-Assad,” the Military Operations Command wrote in a post on Telegram, reported CNN. “To the displaced all over the world, a free Syria awaits you,” the statement added.

The rebels claimed to have taken control of the notorious Saydnaya Military Prison north of Damascus before entering the capital.

Once perceived as unassailable, Assad’s regime collapsed like a pack of cards on the face of a swift aggression led by a group called Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), formerly known as the Al-Nusra Front affiliated with terror group Al-Qaeda, and allied factions.

Assad, who was backed by Russia for a long time, will be remembered as the man who crushed peaceful protests against his regime in 2011, triggering a civil war that led to the deaths of over half a million people and forced six million others to become refugees.