Syrian sources say Assad may have been killed in plane crash during escape

A Syrian airplane took off from Damascus airport around the time the capital was reported to have been taken by Syria’s rebels, according to data from the Flightradar website, suggesting ousted president Bashar al-Assad may have been onboard.

The aircraft initially flew towards Syria’s coastal region, a stronghold of Assad’s Alawite sect, but then made an abrupt U-turn and flew in the opposite direction for a few minutes before disappearing off the map.

Reuters has not been able to ascertain who was on board.

Two Syrian sources say there is a very high probability that Assad may have been killed in a plane crash as it was a mystery why the plane took a surprise U-turn and disappeared off the map.