Half a century of the Assad family ruling Syria have collapsed in less than two weeks, in a seismic moment for the Middle East.
Opposition forces swept across the country and entered Damascus with little or no resistance as the Syrian army melted away. President Bashar Assad, Syria's ruler for 24 years — succeeding his father, Hafez Assad — fled the country. Anti-government protests in 2011 met with a brutal crackdown, escalating into a civil war that has killed more than half a million people and displaced half of Syria's prewar population of 23 million. Assad, backed by Iran and Russia, gradually regained control of more than two-thirds of Syria, leaving the rebels with one stronghold in the northwest of the country.
