Assad's final hours in Syria

One Essential Read

Recommended by Edson Caldas, Newsletter Editor

Deception, despair and flight

A view of personal souvenirs for Syria's Bashar al-Assad at one of the rooms at Presidential Palace known as Qasr al-Shaab ''People's Palace.''

Souvenirs at one of the rooms at the Presidential Palace after rebels seized the capital. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh

Bashar al-Assad confided in almost no one about his plans to flee Syria as his reign collapsed. Instead, aides, officials and even relatives were deceived or kept in the dark.

Interviews with 14 people familiar with Assad's final days and hours in power paint a picture of a leader casting around for outside help to extend his 24-year rule before leaning on deception and stealth to plot his exit from Syria.

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