npr.org / .npr-org-middle-east / Page 9

With the fall of the regime in Syria, displaced Syrians around the world are contemplating what they once thought was impossible: returning home to Syria.

Former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his family have been granted asylum in Russia and are now in Moscow. Assad's departure marks the end of nearly 25 years of brutal rule.

The regime of President Bashar al-Assad crumbled in rapid fashion as rebel groups challenged his power. Assad is now in exile in Russia and the rebels have taken control of the capital, Damascus. Now displaced Syrians, some of whom have been out of . ...

NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with Mouaz Moustafa of the non-profit Syrian Emergency Task Force about the dramatic toppling of the Assad regime, as Moustafa prepares to fly back to his home city, Damascus.

NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with professor Joshua Landis, who directs the Center for Middle East Studies at the University of Oklahoma, about how the fall of the Assad regime could change global dynamics.

While Syrian refugees in Lebanon return home, many Lebanese remain on edge. Years of conflict have left the Syria-Lebanon borderlands scarred, and fears grow that instability could spill over again.

The swift downfall of Bashar al-Assad is reverberating throughout the Middle East. Countries are urgently reassessing how to deal with a nation seeking to rebuild itself after years of civil war.

AS Syrian rebels gained control of Damascus, Bashar al-Assad fled to Russia. But the excitement about a new Syria comes with uncertainty about what the future holds.

President Biden said the U.S. is prepared to work with Syrians as they try to create a new government. But President-elect Trump is sounding a different note.

Syrians are celebrating the overthrow of longtime President Bashar al-Assad who fled Damascus, and has been given asylum in Russia.