INTERNATIONAL OMADA NEWS #Syria #Bashar al-Assad #Russia
Russian intelligence agents orchestrated the escape of Basal al-Assad from Syria as the rebels approached Damascus.
As Bloomberg reports citing three sources with knowledge of the matter, Assad was instructed to board his private jet without informing anyone and to disable the jet's transponder.
Departing Damascus, hours before rebels and Syrian civilians ransacked his palace, Assad landed at the Russian Khmeimim air base near Latakia, Syria before continuing his escape journey to Moscow, possibly on a Russian military aircraft.
READ HERE:
Jihadists take over Syria-Take government positions, build Police
Putin approved the Assad rescue operation
According to the report, Russian President Vladimir Putin gave the green light for Assad's rescue - he even made the decision to grant asylum to the ousted dictator - but has no plans to meet with him now that he lives in exile in Russia.
Russian agents reportedly, Bloomberg reports, persuaded Assad to leave Syria once it became clear that regime forces were losing the battle to the rebels led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.
How Assad's plane disappeared from radar
Data from flight tracking website Fligthradar24 showed a plane believed to be carrying Assad taking off in the early hours of Sunday from the Syrian capital.
The aircraft headed for the Mediterranean before making a U-turn and disappearing from radar, sparking speculation that it may have crashed.
However, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told NBC News that Assad was flown out of Syria "in the safest possible way" over the weekend. "He is safe, and this shows that Russia is acting as required in such a critical situation," he said.
And he explained that Moscow helped Assad escape because "he was blamed by the same group of states and governments, which constantly undermine the efforts of countries to live as they wish, as happened in Iraq, Libya and many others." Asked if his country will hand over Assad to the International Criminal Court, Ryabkov replied that Russia is not a party to the convention establishing the ICC.
Assad missing in Russia
Russian officials confirmed Sunday afternoon to Russian media that Assad had landed in Moscow and that Putin had granted him and his family political asylum. However, no photos or videos of Assad have been released in Russia since he reportedly arrived there.
The Assad family owns at least 20 apartments in Moscow worth about 40 million. dollars, the British newspaper Daily Mail reported on Monday. Assad's uncle, Mohammed Makhlouf, reportedly bought at least 18 luxury apartments in the City of Capitals complex, located in Moscow's glitzy skyscraper district.
The two-storey skyscraper - which until the unveiling of London's Shard in 2012 was Europe's tallest building - is home to some of Russia's wealthiest businessmen, ministries, five-star hotels and multinational companies.
Assad and his family may choose one of these apartments as their new residence, although the Russian authorities could provide them with alternatives for security reasons.
Although the Assad family has not lived in Moscow, they are familiar with the Russian capital. Bashar al-Assad's father, Hafez, had visited it frequently for meetings with Putin and other high-ranking officials, while Assad's eldest son studied at a university in Moscow and his wife Asma attended his graduation ceremony.
Source: iefimerida.gr
Recording
