
-
Three things we learned from the second England-India Test
-
Norway reach Euro 2025 quarter-finals as Swiss down eliminated Iceland
-
Alcaraz vows to avoid Murray after defeat on golf course
-
Alcaraz finds magic touch at Wimbledon as Sabalenka storms into quarter-finals
-
Run-hungry Gill glad to 'lead by example' as India level England series
-
Rockets confirm arrival of Durant in unprecedented NBA seven-team trade
-
Alcaraz survives Rublev test to stay on course for Wimbledon hat-trick
-
New Zealand's Dixon wins seventh IndyCar Mid-Ohio title
-
US tariffs to kick in Aug 1, barring trade deals: Bessent
-
England consider Archer and Atkinson recall after heavy India defeat
-
Durant deal becomes NBA-record seven-team trade: reports
-
Verstappen laments 'really difficult' Silverstone fifth
-
BRICS nations hit out at Trump tariffs
-
Hansen shoots Norway to brink of Euro 2025 quarter-finals
-
Jennifer Geerlings-Simons becomes Suriname's first woman president
-
Netanyahu says Trump meeting could 'advance' Gaza deal ahead of Doha talks
-
BRICS meeting in Rio hits out at Trump tariffs
-
Hulkenberg shakes off F1's longest unwanted record with podium finish at Silverstone
-
US tariffs to kick in Aug 1 barring trade deals: Treasury Secretary
-
Norris in dream land after epic home win at Silverstone
-
Sabalenka storms into Wimbledon quarters as Alcaraz braces for Rublev test
-
Sabalenka downs former doubles partner to power into Wimbledon quarters
-
'Jurassic World: Rebirth' roars to top of N.American box office
-
Wimbledon's underdogs enjoy their week in the sun
-
Deep strikes as India hammer England in second Test
-
Sabalenka powers into Wimbledon quarter-finals
-
Dutch powerhouse Van der Poel takes Tour de France lead
-
Emotional Norris wins epic rain-hit British Grand Prix
-
Australian pacemen rattle West Indies run chase
-
Syria fights 'catastrophic' fires for fourth day
-
'Stole the game': Wimbledon line-calling tech malfunctions
-
Van der Poel powers into Tour de France lead
-
Norris wins home British Grand Prix
-
Wimbledon line-calling tech malfunctions
-
BRICS gather in Rio as Trump tariff wars loom
-
Bayern's Musiala out for 'long period' with broken fibula
-
Deep leaves England on brink of defeat as India eye series-levelling win
-
Caldentey's Arsenal stint boosting her bid for Euros and Ballon d'Or glory
-
Fritz into Wimbledon quarter-finals after Thompson retires
-
Armed gang attacks Kenya Human Rights Commission on eve of protests
-
Hezbollah chief says won't surrender under Israeli threats
-
Arsenal sign Spain midfielder Zubimendi
-
India resume quest to level England series after rain delay
-
Arsenal sign midfielder Zubimendi from Real Sociedad
-
Alcaraz seeks top gear at Wimbledon as Sabalenka stays calm
-
'Emergency' at Afghan border as migrant returns from Iran surge ahead of deadline
-
Rain delays India's bid for win over England in second Test
-
Gaza truce talks to resume in Doha before Netanyahu heads to US
-
Schmidt admits Wallabies have mountain to climb against Lions
-
Israeli negotiators due in Qatar for Gaza truce talks

Assad says Syria in hands of 'terrorists'
Ousted president Bashar al-Assad broke his silence Monday after fleeing Syria, saying in a statement that he only left once Damascus had fallen and denounced the country's new leaders as "terrorists".
Assad fled to Russia just over a week ago, as a lightning offensive spearheaded by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) wrested from his control city after city until the rebels reached the Syrian capital.
The collapse of Assad's rule stunned the world and sparked celebrations around Syria and beyond, after his crackdown on democracy protests in 2011 sparked one of the deadliest wars of the century.
Rooted in Syria's branch of Al-Qaeda, HTS is proscribed by several Western governments as a terrorist organisation, though it has sought to moderate its rhetoric and pledged to protect the country's religious minorities.
Long before the emergence of HTS and jihadist groups in the Syrian war, however, Assad consistently branded his opponents, including non-violent protesters, as "terrorists".
"My departure from Syria was neither planned nor did it occur during the final hours of the battles," said a statement on the ousted presidency's Telegram channel.
Assad was propped up throughout the war by Russia and Iran.
"Moscow requested... an immediate evacuation to Russia on the evening of Sunday December 8" after he moved that day to Latakia, where Russia operates a naval base, the statement said.
"When the state falls into the hands of terrorism and the ability to make a meaningful contribution is lost, any position becomes void of purpose," added the statement, released in English.
Assad's fall sparked rejoicing in Syria and around the world after five decades of rule by his clan, which had zero tolerance for dissent and which operated a complex web of prisons to detain anyone even suspected of dissent.
- 'We want our children' -
To the victims of some of Assad's worst atrocities, the end of his era brought a glimmer of hope that they might find closure.
As HTS and its allies advanced through Syria, they opened prison gates to free people suspected of dissent who had been held for days, months, years and even decades.
"We want our children, alive, dead, burned, ashes, buried in mass graves... just tell us," Ayoush Hassan, 66, told AFP at Saydnaya, one of the prisons Assad had used to strike fear into Syrian society.
She travelled to the prison in Damascus from her home in northern Syria, but could find no trace of her missing son.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, more than 100,000 people died in Syria's jails and detention centres from 2011.
Ghazi Mohammed al-Mohammed, a survivor of detention, told AFP that officers seized him while he was on a trip to Damascus, took away his papers and said to him: "Now you're number 3006."
He does not even know why he was arrested.
"Towards the end I just wanted to die, waiting for when they would execute us. I was almost happy, as it would mean my suffering was over," he said.
The war sparked by Assad's crackdown on the revolt killed more than 500,000 people, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, and forced more than half the population to flee their homes.
- 'We can't leave a vacuum' -
Governments around the world have welcomed the downfall of Assad, who came under sanctions over the abuses committed under his authority.
On whether HTS could be trusted, she was cautious.
"For us, it's not only the words, but we want to see the deeds going to the right direction," she said. "So not only what they are saying, but also what they are doing."
The UN envoy to Syria, Geir Pedersen, told HTS leader Abu Mohammed al-Jolani Syria must have a "credible and inclusive" transition, according to a statement on Monday.
Qatar's embassy is set to resume operations on Tuesday after Turkey, a key backer of some of the rebel groups that ousted Assad, reopened its embassy.
Britain and the United States confirmed they were in touch with HTS, despite officially considering the organisation a "terrorist" group.
A French diplomatic team is due in Damascus on Tuesday to "retake possession of our real estate" and make "initial contact" with the new authorities, acting Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his country was coordinating on providing aid including wheat, flour and oil to Syria.
Ukraine has been at war since Russia invaded in 2022.
- 'Solidarity by everyone' -
A cautious sense of calm is returning to many cities, but Damascus's interim governor acknowledged that major obstacles lie ahead.
"The challenges we are facing right now are the massive destruction of the institutional structure in terms of human resources, local economy, and the social structure," said Maher Marwan.
"This is a reality that requires great effort and awareness, in addition to solidarity by everyone at this phase."
Since Assad's fall, both Israel and Turkey have carried out military strikes inside Syria.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted his country has "no interest in confronting Syria", despite launching hundreds of strikes over the past week.
"Israel's policy toward Syria will be determined by the evolving reality on the ground," he said in a video statement.
Those strikes continued early Monday, with the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reporting raids on military sites in the coastal Tartus region.
The UK-based monitor, which relies on a network of sources inside Syria, said the raids were "the heaviest strikes" in the area in more than a decade.
burs-ser/jxb
A.Rodriguezv--AMWN