The US magazine "The Atlantic" has published an extensive investigation into the final days of Syria's former president Bashar al-Assad's departure from power.
Modern.az reports that the article's author, journalist Robert Worth, prepared the piece based on conversations with dozens of sources, including former high-ranking Syrian officials, the presidential palace's inner circle, “Hezbollah” representatives, and former Israeli security officials.
The article states that on December 7, 2024, as rebel forces besieged Damascus, Assad was reassuring his inner circle, saying that victory was near. However, shortly thereafter, he left the country at night on a Russian plane, almost without informing anyone. This step was regarded as “betrayal” among his supporters, and many of his close associates were forced to leave Syria in haste.
Worth's sources describe Assad as “a leader detached from reality, addicted to sex and video games, and arrogant.” The article emphasizes that, although regional countries offered him various political agreements in recent days, Assad did not respond to these calls, which envisioned him leaving the presidential post. The author attributes this to a false sense of confidence that emerged after Assad remained in power following Russian President Vladimir Putin's military intervention in 2015.
The investigation notes that Syria's economy had virtually collapsed, and the country's sovereignty had partially fallen under the influence of Russia and Iran. Assad's excessive belief in the propaganda regarding Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and the “axis of resistance” delivering a decisive blow to Israel is also cited among his miscalculations.
The article also contains scandalous claims about Assad's close advisor, Luna al-Shibl. It is reported that she was Assad's unofficial mistress and was found dead under suspicious circumstances in the summer of 2024. Worth, citing a former Israeli official, writes that al-Shibl might also have been transmitting information for Russia.
The article also recalls that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan called on Assad for talks that would allow for political reconciliation and the return of refugees, but Damascus rejected these proposals. Other sources, including Reuters, report that Assad removed hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and classified materials from the country before his escape.
