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DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Ousted Syrian President Bashar Assad fled to Moscow on Sunday, Russian media reported, hours after a stunning rebel advance took over the capital of Damascus and ended the Assad family’s 50 years of iron rule. The Russian agencies, Tass and RIA, cited an unidentified Kremlin source on Assad and his family being given asylum in Moscow, his longtime ally and protector. The Associated Press was not immediately able to verify the reports but contacted the Kremlin for comment. RIA also said Moscow had received guarantees from Syrian insurgents of the security of Russian military bases and diplomatic posts in Syria. Assad reportedly left Syria early Sunday, and Syrians have been pouring into streets echoing with celebratory gunfire after a stunning rebel advance reached the capital, ending the Assad family’s 50 years of iron rule. The swiftly moving events have raised questions about the future of the country and the wider region. Russia has requested an emergency session of the U.N. Security Council discuss the situation in Syria, Russia’s first deputy permanent representative to the U.N., Dmitry Polyansky, posted on Telegram. Joyful crowds gathered in squares in Damascus, waving the Syrian revolutionary flag in scenes that recalled the early days of the Arab Spring uprising, before a brutal crackdown and the rise of an insurgency plunged the country into a nearly 14-year civil war. Others gleefully ransacked the presidential palace and residence after Assad and other top officials vanished. Abu Mohammed al-Golani, a former al-Qaida commander who cut ties with the group years ago and says he embraces pluralism and religious tolerance, leads the biggest rebel faction and is poised to chart the country’s future. In his first public appearance since fighters entered the Damascus suburbs Saturday, al-Golani visited the sprawling Umayyad Mosque and called Assad’s fall “a victory to the Islamic nation.” Calling himself by his given name, Ahmad al-Sharaa, and not his nom de guerre, he told hundreds of people that Assad had made Syria “a farm for Iran’s greed.” The rebels face the daunting task of healing bitter divisions in a country ravaged by war and still split among armed factions. Turkey-backed opposition fighters are battling U.S.-allied Kurdish forces in the north, and the Islamic State group is still active in some remote areas. Syrian state television broadcast a rebel statement early Sunday saying Assad had been overthrown and all prisoners had been released. They called on people to preserve the institutions of “the free Syrian state.” The rebels later announced a curfew in Damascus from 4 p.m. to 5 a.m. The rebels said they freed people held at the notorious Saydnaya prison, where rights groups say thousands were tortured and killed. A video circulating online purported to show rebels breaking open cell doors and freeing dozens of female prisoners, many of whom appeared shocked. At least one small child was seen among them. “This happiness will not be completed until I can see my son out of prison and know where is he,” said one relative, Bassam Masr. “I have been searching for him for two hours. He has been detained for 13 years.” Rebel commander Anas Salkhadi later appeared on state TV and sought to reassure Syria’s religious and ethnic minorities, saying: “Syria is for everyone, no exceptions. Syria is for Druze, Sunnis, Alawites, and all sects.” “We will not deal with people the way the Assad family did,” he added. Damascus residents prayed in mosques and celebrated in squares, calling, “God is great.” People chanted anti-Assad slogans and honked car horns. Teenage boys picked up weapons apparently discarded by security forces and fired into the air. Revelers filled Umayyad Square, where the Defense Ministry is located. Some waved the three-starred Syrian flag that predates the Assad government and was adopted by the revolutionaries. Elsewhere, many parts of the capital were empty and shops were closed. Soldiers and police left their posts and fled, and looters broke into the Defense Ministry. Videos showed families wandering the presidential palace, some carrying stacks of plates and other household items. “It’s like a dream. I need someone to wake me up,” said opposition fighter Abu Laith, adding the rebels were welcomed in Damascus with “love.” At the Justice Ministry, where rebels stood guard, Judge Khitam Haddad said they were protecting documents from the chaos. Outside, some residents sought information about relatives who disappeared under Assad. The rebels “have felt the pain of the people,” said one woman, giving only her first name, Heba. She worried about possible revenge killings by the rebels, many of whom appeared to be underage. Syria’s al-Watan newspaper, which was historically pro-government, wrote: “We are facing a new page for Syria. We thank God for not shedding more blood.” It added that media workers should not be blamed for publishing past government statements, saying it “only carried out the instructions.” A statement from the Alawite sect that has formed the core of Assad’s base called on young Syrians to be “calm, rational and prudent and not to be dragged into what tears apart the unity of our country.” The rebels mainly come from the Sunni Muslim majority in Syria, which also has sizable Druze, Christian and Kurdish communities. In Qamishli in the northeast, a Kurdish man slapped a statue of the late leader Hafez Assad with his shoe. Syrian Prime Minister Mohammed Ghazi Jalali said the government was ready to “extend its hand” to the opposition and turn its functions over to a transitional government. A video shared on Syrian opposition media showed armed men escorting him from his office and to the Four Seasons hotel on Sunday. Anwar Gargash said Assad’s destination at this point is a “footnote in history,” comparing it to the long exile of German Kaiser Wilhelm II after World War I. The rebel advances since Nov. 27 were the largest in recent years, and saw the cities of Aleppo, Hama and Homs fall within days as the Syrian army melted away. Russia, Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group, which provided crucial support to Assad throughout the uprising, abandoned him as they reeled from other conflicts. The end of Assad’s rule was a major blow to Iran and its allies, already weakened by conflict with Israel. Iran, which had strongly backed him throughout the civil war, said Syrians should decide their future “without destructive, coercive, foreign intervention.” The Iranian Embassy in Damascus was ransacked after apparently having been abandoned. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meanwhile said Israeli troops had seized a buffer zone in the Golan Heights established in 1974, saying it was to protect Israeli residents after Syrian troops abandoned positions. Israel’s military later warned residents of five southern Syria communities to stay home for their safety, and didn’t respond to questions. Israel captured the Golan in the 1967 Mideast war and later annexed it. The international community, except for the United States, views it as occupied, and the Arab League on Sunday condemned what it called Israel’s efforts to take advantage of Assad’s downfall occupy more territory. The rebels are led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group, or HTS, which has its origins in al-Qaida and is considered a terrorist organization by the United States and the United Nations. Al-Golani, has sought to recast the group as a moderate and tolerant force. “Golani has made history and sparked hope among millions of Syrians,” said Dareen Khalifa, a senior adviser with the International Crisis Group. “But he and the rebels now face a formidable challenge ahead.” The U.N.’s special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, called Saturday for urgent talks in Geneva to ensure an “orderly political transition.” The Gulf nation of Qatar, a key regional mediator, hosted an emergency meeting of foreign ministers and top officials from eight countries with interests in Syria late Saturday. They included Iran, Saudi Arabia, Russia and Turkey. Majed al-Ansari, Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, said they agreed on the need “to engage all parties on the ground,” including the HTS, and that the main concern is “stability and safe transition.” ___ Sewell reported from Beirut. Associated Press writers Bassem Mroue, Sarah El Deeb and Kareem Chehayeb in Beirut; Samar Kassaballi, Omar Sanadiki and Ghaith Alsayed in Damascus; Jon Gambrell in Manama, Bahrain; Josef Federman in Doha, Qatar; and Tia Goldenberg in Jerusalem, contributed. To remove this article -FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) — Jalen Jackson scored 23 points as Purdue Fort Wayne beat Robert Morris 82-77 on Sunday. Read this article for free: Already have an account? To continue reading, please subscribe: * FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) — Jalen Jackson scored 23 points as Purdue Fort Wayne beat Robert Morris 82-77 on Sunday. Read unlimited articles for free today: Already have an account? FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) — Jalen Jackson scored 23 points as Purdue Fort Wayne beat Robert Morris 82-77 on Sunday. Jackson had six rebounds and three steals for the Mastodons (6-4, 1-1 Horizon League). Corey Hadnot II scored 13 points, shooting 4 of 11 from the field and 5 for 6 from the free-throw line. Rasheed Bello went 4 of 11 from the field (2 for 4 from 3-point range) to finish with 12 points. Alvaro Folgueiras finished with 25 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and two steals for the Colonials (6-5, 0-2). Robert Morris also got 19 points, four assists and four steals from Kam Woods. Ryan Prather Jr. finished with 14 points. ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar. Advertisement

President Joe Biden spoke Sunday on the collapse of the Syrian government under Bashar Assad, calling the moment a "fundamental act of justice" after more than two decades of oppression. "After 13 years of civil war in Syria and more than half a century of brutal authoritarian rule by Bashar Assad and his father before him, rebel forces have forced Assad to resign his office and flee the country," Biden said. "We're not sure where he is but there's word that he's in Moscow. At long last the Assad regime has fallen. This regime brutalized and tortured and killed literally hundreds of thousands of innocent Syrians. The fall of the regime is a fundamental act of justice. It's a moment of historic opportunity for the long-suffering people of Syria." RELATED STORY | The fall of Bashar Assad after 13 years of war in Syria brings to an end a decades-long dynasty President Biden, speaking from the White House just hours after rebels overthrew the Syrian government and Assad fled the country, said while the news is positive for the Middle East, warned that it marks "a moment of risk and uncertainty." "As we all turn to the question of what comes next, the United States will work with our partners and the stakeholders in Syria to help them seize an opportunity to manage the risks," he said. "You know, for years, the main backers of Assad have been Iran, Hezbollah and Russia. But over the last week their support collapsed — all three of them. Because all three of them are far weaker today than they were when I took office." RELATED STORY | Family of kidnapped American reporter still believes he is alive in Syria Meanwhile, President Biden also spoke on Austin Tice, a former U.S. Marine and freelance journalist who disappeared in August 2012 while covering the Syrian civil war. Tice's family believes he is still alive in Syria, and President Biden said his administration will continue to work to locate him and bring him home. "We believe he's alive. We think we can get him back. But we have no direct evidence of that yet and Assad should be held accountable," he said. "... We want to get him out."

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Hezbollah fired into a disputed border zone held by Israel on Monday. The militant group said the volley, its first during the truce, was a warning shot in response to what it called repeated Israeli truce violations . Israeli leaders threatened to retaliate and within hours, Israel’s military carried out its biggest wave of strikes in southern Lebanon. Lebanon’s Health Ministry said an Israeli airstrike on a village killed five people, while another airstrike killed four. Israeli strikes had already killed two people on Monday before the Hezbollah attack. Both sides accuse each other of violating the ceasefire, which began Wednesday. Israel says that under the truce deal it reserves the right to retaliate for Hezbollah violations. Hezbollah began launching its attacks on Israel last year in solidarity with Hamas militants who are fighting in the Gaza Strip. The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 250 people hostage . Israel’s blistering retaliatory offensive has killed at least 44,429 Palestinians , more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were combatants. Israel says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. The war in Gaza has destroyed vast areas of the coastal enclave and displaced 90% of the population of 2.3 million, often multiple times . WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders says Israel “is committing war crimes & ethnic cleansing in Gaza.” The Vermont lawmaker said he agreed with a former top Israeli general and defense minister, Moshe Yaalon, who accused the government of ethnic cleansing in northern Gaza , where the army has sealed off the towns of Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahiya and the Jabaliya refugee camp and allowed almost no humanitarian aid to enter. “You don’t fight terrorism by starving people & killing tens of thousands of civilians,” Sanders said Monday in a post on social media. Last month, the Senate rejected attempts by Sanders to block sales of offensive weapons to Israel over mounting civilian deaths in Gaza. WASHINGTON — U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is demanding the immediate release of Israeli hostages still being held in Gaza, saying that if they are not freed before he is sworn into office for a second term there will be “HELL TO PAY.” “Please let this TRUTH serve to represent that if the hostages are not released prior to January 20, 2025, the date that I proudly assume Office as President of the United States, there will be ALL HELL TO PAY in the Middle East, and for those in charge who perpetrated these atrocities against Humanity,” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social site . He added that, “Those responsible will be hit harder than anybody has been hit in the long and storied History of the United States of America. RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW!” It was not immediately clear whether Trump was threatening to directly involve the U.S. military in Israel’s ongoing campaign against Hamas in Gaza. Trump allies have said he hopes there will be a ceasefire and hostage release deal before he returns to office early next year. The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 250 people hostage on Oct. 7, 2023. Some 100 are still held inside Gaza , around two-thirds believed to be alive. WASHINGTON — Senior American officials have had conversations with Israelis to raise questions about some of the strikes they have carried out against Hezbollah since a ceasefire went into place but have not found the Israelis to be in gross violation of the terms of the ceasefire, according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter. The official, who was not authorized to comment publicly about the sensitive conversations with the Israelis, said those conversations were part of a mechanism that was created to ensure that ceasefire agreement is implemented. “This is that mechanism working,” the official added. White House national security spokesman John Kirby on Monday that “largely speaking the ceasefire is holding.” “We’ve gone from, you know dozens of strikes, you know, down to one a day maybe two a day,” Kirby told told reporters aboard Air Force One as President Joe Biden made his way for a visit to Angola. “That’s a tremendous, tremendous reduction. And we’re going to keep trying and see what we can do to get it down to zero so that both sides are fully implementing it. But, this is, this is the only it’s only a, a week or so old.” — By Aamer Madhani JERUSALEM — Hezbollah fired into a disputed border zone held by Israel on Monday, the militant group’s first attack since its ceasefire with Israel took hold last week, after Lebanon accused Israel of violating the truce more than 50 times in recent days. The Israeli military said two projectiles were launched toward Mount Dov, a disputed Israeli-held territory known as Shebaa Farms in Lebanon, where the borders of Lebanon, Syria, and Israel meet. Israel said the projectiles fell in open areas and no injuries were reported. Hezbollah said in a statement that it fired on an Israeli military position in the area as a “defensive and warning response” after what it called “repeated violations” of the ceasefire deal by Israel. It said complaints to mediators tasked with monitoring the ceasefire “were futile in stopping these violations.” The U.S.- and French-brokered ceasefire came into effect on Wednesday calling for a 60-day halt in fighting, aiming to end more than a year of exchanges of fire between Hezbollah and Israel. Since then, Israel has carried out a number of strikes in Lebanon, most recently on Monday, when a drone strike killed a man on a motorcycle in southern Lebanon and another hit a Lebanese army bulldozer in the northeastern town of Hermel, wounding a soldier. The Lebanese army had stayed on the sidelines of the war between Israel and Hezbollah. Israel says the strikes are in response to Hezbollah violations of the ceasefire, without giving specifics. BEIRUT — Lebanon’s parliament speaker on Monday accused Israel of committing 54 breaches of the ceasefire that ended the war between Hezbollah and Israel, demanding urgent intervention to halt what he called “flagrant violations.” Speaking to the Lebanese newspaper Al Joumhouria, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri condemned Israel’s “aggressive actions,” including the alleged demolition of homes in border villages, the persistent overflight of Israeli reconnaissance drones, and airstrikes that have caused casualties. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Berri’s assertions. Israel says it reserves the right under the ceasefire deal to respond to perceived ceasefire violations. An Israeli drone strike on Monday hit a Lebanese army military bulldozer in the northeastern town of Hermel, wounding a soldier, the Lebanese army said in a statement. Also on Monday, an Israeli drone strike targeting a motorcycle in Jdeidet Marjayoun in southern Lebanon killed one person, the Lebanese Health Ministry said. In Bint Jbeil province, a drone strike injured one person, the state-run National News Agency said. On Saturday, two people were killed in an airstrike on Marjayoun province, Lebanon’s state media said. Berri called on the technical committee established to monitor the ceasefire to take immediate action, urging it to “oblige Israel to halt its violations and withdraw from Lebanese territories without delay.” He said that Lebanon and Hezbollah have fully adhered to the terms of the ceasefire since the early hours of Wednesday. Berri is the leader of the Shiite Amal movement, which is closely allied with the Shiite militant group Hezbollah. BEIRUT — Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said Monday one person was killed in an Israeli drone strike that hit a motorcycle, while the Lebanese army said that a soldier was wounded in an Israeli strike on a military bulldozer at an army base. The Israeli military said that it carried out a series of strikes in Lebanon on Sunday and Monday, including one in the same area where the soldier was said to have been wounded. It said it struck several military vehicles in Lebanon’s Bekaa province as well as strikes on Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon. The incidents underscored the fragility of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah reached after nearly 14 months of cross-border fighting. Since the ceasefire went into effect on Wednesday, Israel has struck several times in response to what it says have been ceasefire violations by Hezbollah. Lebanon has accused Israel of violating the deal but so far Hezbollah has not resumed its rocket fire. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar on Monday rejected accusations that Israel is violating the tenuous ceasefire agreement, saying it was responding to Hezbollah violations. In a post on X, Saar said that he made that point in a call with his French counterpart, Jean-Noël Barrot. France, along with the U.S., helped broker the deal and is part of an international monitoring committee meant to ensure the sides uphold their commitments. Israel says that it reserves the right under the deal to respond to perceived ceasefire violations. TEL AVIV, Israel — The Israeli military said Monday an Israeli American soldier who was believed to have been taken hostage alive on Oct. 7, 2023, is now presumed to have been killed during Hamas’ attack and his body taken into Gaza. Neutra, 21, was a New York native who enlisted in the Israeli military and was captured when Hamas attacked southern Israel. Neutra’s parents, Ronen and Orna, led a public campaign while he was thought to be alive for their son’s freedom. They spoke at protests in the U.S. and Israel, addressed the Republican National Convention this year and kept up ties with the Biden administration in their crusade to secure their son’s release. In a statement announcing the death, the military did not say how it came to the conclusion over Neutra’s fate. He was one of seven American Israelis still held in Gaza, four of whom are now said to be dead. Hamas released a video of one, Edan Alexander, over the weekend, indicating he was still alive. In late summer, Israel said Hamas killed Hersh Goldberg-Polin , another prominent Israeli American hostage, along with five other captives, whose bodies the Israeli military recovered. The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 250 hostage. Some 100 captives are still held inside Gaza , around two-thirds believed to be alive. Iraqi militias supported by Iran deployed in Syria on Monday to back the government’s counteroffensive against a surprise advance by insurgents who seized the largest city of Aleppo, a militia official and a war monitor said. Insurgents led by jihadi group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham launched a two-pronged attack on Aleppo last week and the countryside around Idlib before moving toward neighboring Hama province. Government troops built a fortified defensive line in northern Hama in an attempt to stall the insurgents’ momentum while jets on Sunday pounded rebel-held lines. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with Syrian President Bashar Assad in Damascus Sunday and announced Tehran’s full support for his government. He later arrived for talks in Ankara, Turkey, one of the rebels' main backers. Iran has been of Assad’s principal political and military supporters and deployed military advisers and forces after 2011 protests against Assad’s rule turned into an all-out war. Tehran-backed Iraqi militias already in Syria mobilized and additional forces crossed the border to support them, said the Iraqi militia official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. According to Britain-based opposition war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, some 200 Iraqi militiamen on pickups crossed into Syria overnight through the strategic Bou Kamal. They were expected to deploy in Aleppo to support the Syrian army’s pushback against the insurgents, the monitor said. DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — U.S. Navy destroyers shot down seven missiles and drones fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels at the warships and three American merchant vessels they were escorting through the Gulf of Aden. No damage or injuries were reported. U.S. Central Command said late Sunday that the destroyers USS Stockdale and USS O’Kane shot down and destroyed three anti-ship ballistic missiles, three drones and one anti-ship cruise missile. The merchant ships were not identified. The Houthis claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement and said they had targeted the U.S. destroyers and “three supply ships belonging to the American army in the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden.” Houthi attacks for months have targeted shipping through a waterway where $1 trillion in goods pass annually over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and Israel’s ground offensive in Lebanon. A ceasefire was announced in Lebanon last week. The USS Stockdale was involved in a similar attack on Nov. 12 . Read more of the AP's coverage of the Middle East wars: https://apnews.com/hub/mideast-warsHey Democrats: We Should Work With RFK Jr. on Fixing America's Food System | Opinion

The finalists for Strictly Come Dancing have been confirmed Pete Wicks and his dance partner Jowita Przystal are the latest couple to be eliminated from Strictly Come Dancing . In their quest to secure a spot in the Strictly Come Dancing final, Pete Wicks and Jowita Przystal performed an Argentine Tango to Bittersweet Symphony by The Verve and a Foxtrot to Bobby Darin's Beyond The Sea. The pair earned a combined score of 65 points for their performances. After the semi-final, Pete took to Instagram to reflect on his time in the competition and his Argentine Tango. He posted a clip of their dance with the caption: "My favourite dance of my mad little journey... what will be, will be." After learning their fates in today's semi final Tasha Ghouri and her pro partner Aljaž Škorjanec had another go at their waltz to (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman by Aretha Franklin. And Pete Wicks and his dance partner Jowita Przystal danced an Argentine tango to Bittersweet Symphony by The Verve. It was a clean sweep by the judges who all chose to save Tasha and send Pete home. Strictly viewers took to social media to voice their opinion on Pete's departure and many having a change of heart about the reality star. One post said: "I really wasn't keen on Pete at the start of #Strictly. But I stand corrected. He's a sweetheart. Definitely went out on a high, that Argentine Tango was." Another added: "Pete, you are such a genuine and lovely man, and your improvement through this series has been remarkable. Yes, technically, I have often been highly critical, but you have truly improved and won people's hearts. Sending love to you." Further commenters added "Pete keeps going on about not wanting to be on Strictly, yet here he is....he even slated himself and kept saying he can't dance, he suddenly believed in himself though." When asked by host Tess Daly about his time in the competition, Pete said: “It's been wild. I've been quite honest about the fact that I didn't necessarily want to do this [Strictly] in the first place, but everyone else wanted me to do it, and I am so, so glad that I did it! "You don't always have to be the best, but if you enjoy something then why shouldn't you have a go at it? I've tried my best from day one, I said I was in for a penny, in for a pound and I've done it, it's been beautiful.”Chelsea will look to continue their fine form when they travel to St Mary's to face Southampton in the Premier League on Wednesday. Enzo Maresca 's men extended their unbeaten run to six games by beating Aston Villa 3-0 at the weekend, and remain in the top four , only behind Arsenal courtesy of alphabetical order. Opponents Southampton are currently cut adrift at the bottom, four points behind the nearest team, after they could only take a point away at Brighton & Hove Albion on Friday, despite having a goal disallowed for a contentious offside decision. Here, Sports Mole rounds up Chelsea's latest injury and suspension news ahead of making the trip to the South Coast. Wesley Fofana Status: Out Type of injury: Hamstring Possible return date: January 11 (vs. Morecambe) Fofana sustained a hamstring injury in the weekend win over Aston Villa and manager Maresca has confirmed he will miss the next four-to-five weeks as a result. Reece James Status: Out Type of injury: Hamstring Possible return date: Unknown After missing the first few months of the campaign, right-back James is once again facing a few weeks on the sidelines with a hamstring injury, having played just four games this season. Omari Kellyman Status: Out Type of injury: Hamstring Possible return date: Unknown Kellyman is yet to feature for Chelsea since joining from Aston Villa in the summer, and will remain on the sidelines for the foreseeable future due to a hamstring issue. CHELSEA'S SUSPENSION LIST Chelsea have no suspension issues heading into this contest.