Assad statues toppled across Syria as government collapses

The Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, is believed to have fled the country his family ruled over for 50 years as rebels said they had captured the capital after a lightning advance completed in just under two weeks. In the capital’s central square, people climbed on top of tanks and cheered as they trampled on a toppled statue of Assad’s father, Hafez, AFPTV images showed. Elsewhere in towns across Syria, government statues have been felled by people celebrating Assad’s defeat

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Bashar al-Assad reported to have fled Syria as rebels say they have captured Damascus