People stomp and tear apart a giant banner depicting the face of Syria's ouster president Bashar al-Assad during a rally near the Umayyad Square in central Damascus on December 13, 2024. Thousands rallied in central Damascus and in cities across Syria on December 13 to celebrate during the first Friday prayers since Assad's ouster. More than half a century of brutal rule by the Assad clan came to a sudden end on December 8, after a lightning rebel offensive swept across the country and took the capital. (Photo by Sameer Al-DOUMY / AFP)