It's almost been a week since the rebels, led by the Islamist movement Hayat Tahrir al-Shams (HTS), took power in Syria. HTS leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, also known as Abu Mohammed al-Julani, called on Syrians on Friday to take to the streets and celebrate what he calls a victory for the revolution.
I want to congratulate the Syrian people on the blessed revolution's victory and I urge them to go out and celebrate and express their joy, says al-Sharaa in a video on Telegram.
At the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, tens of thousands of men, women, and children have gathered before Friday prayers. Opposition flags are waving and some are shouting: "One, one, one, the Syrian people are one", according to AFP's reporter on the scene.
Elsewhere, for example in the city of al-Suwayda in southern Syria, crowds are celebrating al-Assad's fall.
