Russia warns of harsh response if its bases in Syria are attacked

MOSCOW – Russia will give a harsh response if its bases in Syria are attacked, Interfax news agency said on Monday, citing a senior Russian lawmaker. 

The security of Russia's military bases in Syria is fully ensured, there are no issues in this respect, said the lawmaker. 

Syrians awakened on Monday to a hopeful if uncertain future, after rebels seized the capital Damascus and President Bashar al-Assad fled to Russia, ending a 13-year civil war and more than 50 years of his family's brutal rule.

Assad's overthrow could cost Russia its Mediterranean naval base.

The lightning advance of a militia alliance spearheaded by Hayat al-Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a former al-Qaeda affiliate, marked one of the biggest turning points for the Middle East in generations. Assad's fall wiped out a bastion from which Iran and Russia exercised influence across the Arab world.

Moscow gave asylum to Assad and his family, Russian media reported and Mikhail Ulyanov, Russia's ambassador to international organizations in Vienna, said on his Telegram channel on Sunday.

International governments welcomed the end of the Assads' autocratic government, as they sought to take stock of a new-look Middle East.

US President Joe Biden said Syria is in a period of risk and uncertainty, and it is the first time in years that neither Russia, Iran nor the Hezbollah militant organization held an influential role there.

HTS is still designated as a terrorist group by the US, Turkey and the United Nations, although it has spent years trying to soften its image to reassure international governments and minority groups within Syria.