Over the last two weeks, Syrian rebel factions have launched a sweeping offensive that has toppled long-time Baathist dictator Bashar al-Assad’s regime. Ahmad al-Sharaa, a former al-Qaida commander who cut ties with the group and pledged to uphold religious tolerance and pluralism, leads the biggest resistance group and will likely lead a new Syrian government. Residents in the capital, Damascus, celebrated the fall of Assad, chanting, “God is great.” While rebels moved against Assad, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israeli troops temporarily seized a buffer zone in the Golan Heights established in 1974 after Syrian troops abandoned their posts, citing the need to protect Israeli citizens. The international community – with the exception of the United States – views the Golan Heights as occupied by Israel.
Information from AP News, Axios, PBS News.