Starmer welcomes fall of Assad's 'barbaric regime'

UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has welcomed the autumn of Bashar al-Assad's "barbaric regime" successful Syria, arsenic helium called for the restoration of "peace and stability".

The dictator - who Russian authorities media study is successful Moscow having been granted asylum by Russia - fled Syria aft his authorities fell to a lightning rebel violative aboriginal connected Sunday.

Sir Keir said the Syrian radical "had to enactment up with [Assad's] brutal authorities for far, acold excessively long".

When asked if the authorities would prosecute with rebel radical Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), acceptable up arsenic an affiliate of al-Qaeda and proscribed arsenic a violent radical by the UK, helium said it was "early days" but that determination needed to beryllium a "political solution".

"The developments successful Syria successful caller hours and days are unprecedented, and we are speaking to our partners successful the portion and monitoring the concern closely," Sir Keir said connected Sunday, soon aft arriving successful the United Arab Emirates for a sojourn unrelated to events successful Syria.

"The Syrian radical person suffered nether Assad's barbaric authorities for excessively agelong and we invited his departure.

"Our absorption is present connected ensuring a governmental solution prevails, and bid and stableness is restored."

He besides called connected "all sides" to support civilians and minorities, and "ensure indispensable assistance tin scope the astir vulnerable" successful the coming hours and days.

Shadow Foreign Secretary Priti Patel said: "Our archetypal precedence indispensable beryllium the Syrian people. Syrians request to beryllium protected – each communities and groups."

Lib Dem person Sir Ed Davey described Assad arsenic "a vile dictator who utilized chemic weapons against him ain people" successful a station connected X.

He added the UK indispensable "do what we tin to guarantee the extortion of number groups and yet an orderly modulation of powerfulness with escaped and just elections".

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner earlier told the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme that the UK wanted to spot "a governmental solution on the lines of UN resolution, and we're moving with our allies".

Asked if HTS would beryllium amended than Assad, Rayner said "we've got to person a authorities successful Syria, a governmental solution, that protests civilians and infrastructure".

The Islamist group, acceptable up 13 years agone arsenic a nonstop affiliate of al-Qaeda, drove the rebels' emergence to powerfulness successful Syria successful caller weeks.

It antecedently publically broke ranks with al-Qaeda, though it remains proscribed arsenic a violent radical by the UK, arsenic good arsenic the UN, the US, Turkey and different countries.

Questions stay implicit whether it has wholly renounced those links, but its connection successful the run-up to Assad's deposition has been 1 of inclusiveness and a rejection of violence.

Former caput of MI6 Sir John Sawers told Sky News: "I deliberation Abu Mohammed al-Jawlani, the leader, has made large efforts implicit the past 10 years to region himself from those violent groups and surely the actions we've seen of [HTS] implicit the past 2 weeks has been those of a liberation movement, not of a violent organisation."

He added: "It would beryllium alternatively ridiculous, actually, if we're incapable to prosecute with the caller enactment successful Syria due to the fact that of a proscription dating backmost 12 years."

The premier minister's pre-planned visits to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia for meetings connected Monday are unrelated to events successful Syria.

The authorities said Sir Keir is pursuing person ties with the 2 countries to summation investment, deepen defence and information ties, and thrust maturation and caller opportunities to payment moving people.

The UK authorities had been evacuating its citizens from Syria implicit the play earlier the autumn of Damascus overnight.

On Sunday, hundreds of Syrians successful Manchester celebrated Assad's demise by singing, dancing and crying successful the metropolis centre, portion dozens of radical besides gathered successful Belfast to observe the extremity of his regime.