"You (the Syrian people - ed.) are the real owners of this glorious victory. I respectfully greet you on behalf of my country and people, wish you a blessed victory and hope that we will support you with all our might in your struggle for development, reconstruction, and we will overcome difficulties together," the Turkish leader said in his address after the cabinet meeting.

Earlier, representatives of the armed opposition in Syria, who seized the state television, appeared on the air claiming that they had established control over the country. Syrian Prime Minister Mohammed Ghazi al-Jalali said that he remains in the country with several ministers, but they do not know where the defense minister is. The prime minister also said that he had established contact with the leadership of the armed opposition.

The Russian Foreign Ministry reported that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, after negotiations with a number of participants in the Syrian conflict, decided to resign and left Syria, giving instructions to peacefully transfer power, while Russia did not participate in the negotiations.

A Kremlin source told RIA Novosti that Assad and his family members arrived in Moscow - Russia granted them asylum based on humanitarian considerations. The agency's interlocutor also noted that Russian officials are in contact with representatives of the armed Syrian opposition, whose leaders have guaranteed the security of military bases and diplomatic institutions of the Russian Federation in Syria, reports ria.ru.