Syria rebels burn tomb of Bashar al-Assad's father Hafez

Armed men are seen celebrating in Hafez al-Assad's burning mausoleum in the family's hometown.

British Broadcasting CorporationWatch LiveHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC InDepthBBC VerifySportBusinessExecutive LoungeTechnology of BusinessFuture of BusinessInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceAI v the MindCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsArtsArts in MotionTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthVideoLiveAudioWeatherNewslettersSyria rebels burn tomb of Bashar al-Assad's fatherAFP via Getty ImagesSyrian rebels look at a burning gravesite of Hafez al-Assad at his mausoleum QardahaSyrian rebel fighters have destroyed the tomb of late president Hafez al-Assad, father of ousted president Bashar, in the family's hometown.

Videos verified by the BBC showed armed men chanting as they walked around the burning mausoleum in Qardaha, in the north-west of the coastal Latakia region.

The rebels led by Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) swept across Syria in a lightning offensive that toppled the Assad dynasty's 54-year rule. Bashar al-Assad has fled to Russia where he and his family have been given asylum.

Statues and posters of Hafez and his son have been pulled down across the country to cheers from Syrians celebrating the end of their rule.

In 2011, Bashar al-Assad brutally crushed a peaceful pro-democracy uprising, sparking a devastating civil war in which more than half a million people have been killed and 12 million others forced to flee their homes.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1wq01wde44o

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