Putin personally decided to grant asylum to Assad - Kremlin

The decision to grant political asylum to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his family was made personally by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesperson, confirmed this in a statement to journalists, Caliber.Az reports per Russian media.

"Such decisions cannot be made without the president. This is his decision," Peskov stated.

However, Peskov declined to comment on Assad's current whereabouts.

When asked by journalists about the location of Bashar al-Assad, who has been granted asylum in Moscow, the Kremlin spokesperson responded, "I have nothing to say about Mr. Assad's whereabouts at this time."

In the early hours of December 8, opposition forces declared Syria liberated from the rule of President Bashar al-Assad as opposition forces surged into the capital.

The stunning collapse of more than 53 years of al-Assad family rule has been described as a historic moment – nearly 14 years after Syrians rose in peaceful protests against a government that met them with violence that quickly spiralled into a bloody civil war.

On November 27, a coalition of opposition fighters launched a major offensive against pro-government forces.

The first attack came at the front line between opposition-held Idlib and the neighbouring governorate of Aleppo.

Three days later, the opposition fighters took Syria’s second-largest city, Aleppo.

The rebels advanced quickly – within days, they took Hama and Homs, a city once dubbed “Capital of the Revolution” during the early years of the war.

On December 7, Deraa – the birthplace of the 2011 uprising – also slipped from government control.

By Vafa Guliyeva