Starmer 'welcomes' fall of 'brutal' Assad regime ahead of Middle East visit

Sir Keir Starmer has welcomed the fall of Bashar al Assad, saying Syrians "have put up with his brutal regime for far, far too long".

The prime minister said his government is "talking to regional allies" as he urged Syrians to find "a political way forward", adding that "it's very important that civilians and minorities are protected in this process.

"But [I'm] very, very pleased that Assad has fallen," he said.

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Sir Keir declined to say if the UK would hold talks with the insurgents who have wrested control of the country from Assad after 24 years in power.

One of those groups, Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS), was once known as the Nusra Front, a former wing of al Qaeda, before cutting those ties in 2016, and has long been designated a terrorist group by the US and Russia.

Mr Starmer said it was important that "we stabilise, that we reject terrorism and violence, and that we all work towards a political settlement for the future of Syria and for the region."

Sir Keir is visiting the Middle East on a trip that was scheduled before the collapse of the Syrian regime to rebel forces.

While the trip was initially set to discuss the economic partnerships between the UK and United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), the regional instability is now also set to feature.

However, Downing Street said on Saturday night that Sir Keir is looking to "deepen defence and security ties" with both the UAE and KSA.

UK defence exports to the KSA are worth £3.8bn, and it is the largest such market for Britain.

For many years, the KSA was opposed to the Assad regime in Syria, as well as opposing Assad's backers in Iran.

The Saudis previously provided military and financial support to various rebel groups in Syria in the wake of the 2011 civil war.

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Last year, Bashar al Assad visited KSA following Syria's readmission to the Arab League after an 11-year absence.

Syria was kicked out of the group following the outbreak of the civil war and the regime's treatment of civilians.

The UAE similarly cut ties with Syria after the outbreak of war, before re-establishing relations in 2018.

The KSA has also improved its relations with Iran recently, despite the two nations backing opposing factions in conflicts like Syria, Yemen and elsewhere.