Thousands of people have protested in several cities across Syria after a video circulates showing an attack on an Alawite shrine in the north, a war monitor and witnesses say. Syria’s new rulers said the video was “old” and “unknown groups” were behind the attack,

The transfer marks the end of an era when Russia played an arguably oversized role in determining which countries could operate in Syria’s contested airspace.

Russia’s scorched-earth intervention on behalf of former Syrian President Bashar Assad once turned the tide of the Syrian civil war.

The toppling of Bashar Assad has raised tentative hopes that Syrians might live peacefully and as equals after a half century of authoritarian rule.

By Tuvan Gumrukcu, Suleiman Al-Khalidi and Guy Faulconbridge TARTOUS, Syria (Reuters) - Russia is pulling back its military from the front lines in northern Syria and from posts in the Alawite Mountains but is not leaving its two main bases in the country after the fall of President Bashar al-Assad,

Russia has begun withdrawing a large amount of military equipment and troops from Syria following the ouster of former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, according to two US officials and a western official familiar with the intelligence.

Across Syria, soldiers tied to the former Assad regime are surrendering their weapons to the interim government. The New York Times spoke to some of these men in Latakia, as they face a new and uncertain future as civilians.

Ahmed al-Shara stressed diplomacy in an interview but criticized Israel’s advance into Syrian territory. A statement said to be from Bashar al-Assad, the ousted leader, defended his decision to leave for Russia.

Syria's main ports are working normally after days of disruptions, maritime officials said on Monday, and Ukraine said it was in touch with the interim government about delivering staple foods.

Israeli warplanes conducted airstrikes late Sunday on military positions in Syria's Latakia and Tartus provinces, according to information from an aircraft observation post. The attacks targeted several key sites in western Syria, including military bases and ammunition depots.

In the Assad clan's former heartland of Latakia, many in the toppled president's Alawite minority are relieved that his iron-clad rule has come to an end.- 'Stealing from us' - After the rebel takeover,

For the first time since he fled the country he ruled with an iron fist and a willingness to kill his own people to hold power, Bashar al-Assad was heard from. In a statement from exile in Moscow, Assad claimed he did not want to leave Syria but was evacuated by Russia after he left Damascus for his family's heartland near the coast.