Kremlin refuses to confirm if Assad in Russia

MOSCOW: The Kremlin on Monday declined to confirm reports that toppled Syrian president Bashar al-Assad has fled to Moscow, adding that it was “surprised” by the rebel takeover.

“As for president Assad’s whereabouts, I’ve got nothing to tell you,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists, adding: “What happened has surprised the whole world and, in this case, we are no exception.”

Kremlin spokesman said Russia would discuss the status of its two military bases in Syria with the country’s new rulers following the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad.

Asked about the future of the bases, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “It is too early to say. This is a subject for discussion with whoever is going to be in power in Syria.”

Syria’s Bashar al-Assad and his family have arrived in Russia and have been granted asylum by the Russian authorities, Russian news agencies reported on Sunday, citing a Kremlin source.

The Interfax news agency quoted the unnamed source as saying: “President Assad of Syria has arrived in Moscow. Russia has granted them (him and his family) asylum on humanitarian grounds.”

Previously, Assad flew out of Damascus for an unknown destination on Sunday, two senior army officers told Reuters, as rebels said they had entered the capital with no sign of army deployments.