Former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said he was evacuated to Russia from the Khmeimim air base in Syria on the evening of December 8 when the base was attacked by drones, Al Jazeera reported.
In a statement posted on the Syrian president's Telegram account, Bashar al-Assad said he left Syria on the evening of December 8 and that his departure was unplanned.
"First of all, my departure from Syria was not planned nor did it take place in the last hours of the battle, as some parties have claimed. On the contrary, I remained in Damascus, carrying out my duties until the dawn of Sunday, December 8, 2024," the statement said.
Bashar al-Assad said that when opposition forces entered Damascus, he moved to a base in Latakia to coordinate with Russian allies to monitor combat operations.
When he arrived at Khmeimim airbase that morning, Syrian government forces had completely withdrawn from all front lines and the last military positions had fallen.
“As the situation on the ground in the area continued to deteriorate, the Russian military base was attacked by drones. With no viable means of leaving the base, Moscow asked the base command to arrange an immediate evacuation to Russia on Sunday evening, December 8,” former Syrian President Assad stressed.
“This comes a day after the fall of Damascus, after the collapse of the last military positions and the resulting paralysis of all remaining state institutions,” the former Syrian leader added.
"At no time during these developments did I consider resigning or seeking refuge, nor was any proposal made to this effect by any individual or party. The only course of action is to continue fighting the terrorist attack," Bashar al-Assad said.
According to the former Syrian president, he never sought personal office but always saw himself as the custodian of a national project, supported by the Syrian people - who believed in its vision - and he also affirmed that he had defended these "until the last moment" and expressed hope that "Syria will once again be free and independent".
Earlier, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov shared in an exclusive interview with NBC News on December 10 that Russia brought former Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad to the country "in the safest way possible" after the Syrian government collapsed.
“His safety has been guaranteed and that shows that Russia acts as required in such an exceptional situation,” said Sergei Ryabkov.
Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was the first Russian official to confirm Mr Assad's presence in Russia.
