Syrian Rebels Shoots Down Hafez al-Assad Statue with Anti-Aircraft Gun | Video

Damascus: Rebels declared the end of President Bashar al-Assad’s rule on Sunday, triggering celebrations across Syrian cities. In Damascus, crowds cheered and vandalized a statue of Hafez al-Assad, the former president and father of Bashar.

A recent video on social media shows Syrian rebels shooting at a statue of Hafez al-Assad with an anti-aircraft gun. The act follows celebrations marking the end of Assad’s rule.

Similarly, Protesters in Hama, Syria's fourth-largest city, toppled a statue of Hafez al-Assad, located over 200 kilometers from Damascus. The atmosphere was charged with celebratory gunfire and chants of 'Allahu Akbar' as the monument was destroyed.

Syrian rebel fighters have destroyed the tomb of Hafez al-Assad, the late president and father of ousted leader Bashar al-Assad, in the family’s hometown.

Rebels, led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), launched a swift offensive that ended the Assad dynasty's 54-year rule in Syria. Bashar al-Assad has fled to Russia, where he and his family have been granted asylum.

In 2011, Bashar al-Assad violently suppressed a peaceful pro-democracy uprising, igniting a devastating civil war that has claimed over half a million lives and displaced 12 million people.

Hafez al-Assad ruled Syria with an iron fist from 1971 until his death in 2000, after which power was passed to his son, Bashar.