The Syrian opposition announced today, Sunday, that it has liberated Damascus and overthrown the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, which lasted 24 years.

In a statement broadcast on state television, the opposition declared: “By the grace of God, the city of Damascus has been liberated, and the tyrant Bashar al-Assad has been overthrown.” The opposition also announced the release of all detainees.

A well-informed Syrian military source told Reuters that the Syrian army’s leadership informed officers about the fall of the regime shortly after armed factions declared they had entered the capital, Damascus. Two senior army officers revealed that President Bashar al-Assad had left the country on a plane to an unknown destination.

A few hours earlier, the Syrian factions announced full control over the strategic city of Homs after just one day of fighting, following their control of the key cities of Aleppo and Hama in northwestern Syria.

Fighters from the factions fired shots into the air in celebration, and young men tore down pictures of the Syrian president, whose grip on the country collapsed with the army’s retreat over the past week.