Former Syrian Regime Media Office Director Reveals the Final Days Before Assad’s Fall
Kamal Saqr, the former head of the Media Office in the Syrian Presidency, attributed Russia’s refusal to grant Assad permission to use the Hmeimim airbase to the Syrian president’s earlier rejection of Russian mediation for a meeting with Turkish President Erdoğan.
Saqr stated that Assad failed to reach President Putin for three consecutive days before the fall of Damascus on December 8. During this time, Iranian forces awaited Russian approval to deploy their aircraft to Hmeimim via Iraq, but Moscow rejected these requests. Meanwhile, the United States threatened to shoot down any aircraft entering Iraqi airspace.
He highlighted the dire state of the Syrian military establishment amidst the country’s economic collapse. The situation worsened when the Iraqi side informed Syrian authorities that prior invitations to Ankara for dialogue with Damascus were no longer valid, as armed factions approached control of the capital.
Saqr explained that the root cause was Assad’s repeated refusals of requests from President Putin’s envoy, Lavrentiev, to hold a meeting with Erdoğan, even at the level of foreign ministers. Assad insisted on security officials meeting instead.
Saqr described Assad’s stance as detached from reality, noting that Assad feared the political consequences of such a meeting. This reluctance led Ankara to maintain its firm position and Moscow to refuse assistance at a critical moment.
Source: Agencies and Newspapers
