Russia announced the evacuation of part of its diplomatic staff in the Syrian capital, Damascus, on Sunday, one week after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

The Russian Foreign Ministry’s Crisis Management Department issued a press release stating that the staff was withdrawn on a special flight of the Russian Air Force from the Hmeimim airbase.

The department noted that the flight also included the evacuation of members from the diplomatic missions of Belarus, North Korea, and Abkhazia.