Concerned about the deteriorating situation in Syria, the Indian government issued an advisory late last night to all Indian citizens to “completely avoid travel to Syria until further notice”.
In a statement sharing an emergency helpline number and an email ID, the Ministry of External Affairs appealed to all Indians currently in Syria to “get in touch with the Indian Embassy in Damascus”.
New Delhi’s urgent notification also said that “those who can do so are advised to leave (Syria) by available commercial flights as soon as possible.” For those who cannot do so, the advisory asks them to “exercise extreme caution about their safety and limit their activities to a minimum.”
The emergency helpline number shared is for the Indian Embassy in Damascus. This is +963 993385973. The statement said that this number can also be used on WhatsApp, along with adding an emergency email ID – which is hoc.damascus@mea.gov.in. The advisory said updates will be shared after contacting staff.
Travel advice for Syria: pic.twitter.com/zg1AH7n6RB
– Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) 6 December 2024
What’s happening in Syria – and how bad are the conditions?
Syria is in the midst of a political turmoil, with the Russia and Iran-backed Bashar al-Assad regime finding itself surrounded by rebel groups and militias that are backed by Turkey. Rebel forces have launched a massive offensive across Syria since last week with the aim of ousting President Bashar al-Assad.
A war monitor told AFP news agency that Islamist-led rebels were at the gates of Syria’s Homs. Many other Syrian cities have fallen out of government control – some without even a shot being fired.
The offensive by Islamic rebels has been so rapid that Syria’s second city Aleppo and strategically located Hama have already fallen from the control of President Bashar al-Assad. This is the first time this has happened since the civil war started in 2011.
Bashar al-Assad’s clan has ruled Syria for the past five decades, but for the first time, it looks actually vulnerable to complete collapse. If rebels capture Homs, it would cut off the Mediterranean coast from the seat of power in the capital, Damascus, which is Bashar Assad’s main stronghold.
By Friday morning (local time), Islamist rebels were less than five kilometers from the edge of Homs, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor.
Who’s behind it – and what’s his past?
Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, leader of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham or HTS rebel coalition, has clearly stated that the aim of the attack is to overthrow Bashar al-Assad and end his rule in Syria.
“When we talk about objectives, the goal of the revolution is to overthrow this regime. It is our right to use all available means to achieve that goal,” Jolani told CNN in an interview.
HTS is led by the Islamist rebel coalition that launched the attack that began on November 27, which stems from the Syrian branch of al Qaeda, but has tried to tone down its image in recent days.
Abu Mohammed al-Jolani is also known as the ‘blue-eyed boy’ of ISIS terrorist Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Several years ago he was held in a notorious American detention center in Iraq. But al-Jolani, once dismissed by the US as a lost cause, has emerged from the shadows. Now he finds himself a man of power in Syria.
Interestingly, Islamist rebels launched their offensive into Syria on the same day a ceasefire came into force in the war between Israel and Lebanese Hezbollah, which along with Russia and Iran has been a staunch supporter of the Bashar al-Assad government.
Syria’s fate hangs in the balance
Turkey, which has given its full support to the rebels, said on Friday that its Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan would meet his Russian and Iranian counterparts in Qatar later this week for emergency discussions on the situation in Syria.
Meanwhile, the political wing of the HTS-led rebel coalition has reportedly approached Russia and China to support them in their “struggle for liberation” from the decades-old Syrian regime led by Bashar al-Assad. He has reportedly informed Moscow and Beijing that he wishes to officially establish diplomatic relations with both countries.
The foreign ministers of Iran, Iraq and Syria also met in Baghdad on Friday to discuss the ongoing events in Syria.
Russia, which has invested heavily in the war in Ukraine, has not yet revealed how it is reading the situation and what its next steps will be, but Moscow has called on the Bashar Assad regime to defend itself against the rebels. Has indicated to provide limited support.
