Families with children mixed with armed and uniformed Islamist fighters to celebrate the first Friday prayers since Assad's overthrow, later streaming into the Old City's streets and squares.

Indonesia stands ready to evacuate an additional 97 of its citizens from Damascus following the arrival of 37 returnees in Jakarta on Thursday, the Foreign Ministry has said, adding that the government continues to communicate intensively with various stakeholders as Syria faces uncertain days ahead. 

Since the shock collapse of Assad's government over the weekend, Israel has moved troops into the buffer zone on the Syrian side of the dividing line with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and has conducted hundreds of airstrikes to destroy Syrian army weapons and equipment.

Indonesia welcomed on Thursday the adoption of a United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, a document Jakarta co-sponsored with several Muslim-majority countries and which received overwhelming support from UN members.

The resolution -- adopted by a vote of 158-9, with 13 abstentions -- urges "an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire," and "the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages" -- wording similar to a text vetoed by Washington in the Security Council last month.

Austin told Katz that Washington was monitoring developments in Syria and that it backed a peaceful, inclusive political transition, according to the Pentagon. He added that the US would continue its mission to prevent the Islamic State militant group from re-establishing a safe haven in Syria.

Mohammad al-Bashir, appointed by rebel groups as the transitional head of government to run the country until March, told Italy's Corriere della Sera daily that one of his first goals was to "bring back the millions of Syrian refugees who are abroad".

The Indonesian Embassy in Damascus has started the evacuation process for citizens residing in Syria following the lightning overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad by insurgent rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) less than two weeks after the group took control of some of the country’s key cities.

He decided to query the decision since just a week earlier the airline had deemed the route unsafe. In response, Wizz Air's flight operations team told him the airway was now considered secure and he had to fly it, without giving further explanation, the pilot said. 

Israel's military operation into Syria comes two days after the lightning overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad by a rebel alliance left Syrians, regional countries and world powers nervous about what comes next.

As the couple attended the Asian Games, President Xi Jinping vowed to support Assad in "opposing external interference" and in Syria's rebuilding, while his wife Asma was feted in Chinese media.

Netanyahu has repeatedly sought to delay his appearance in court, where he faces charges of bribery, fraud and breach of public trust in three separate cases. 

Assad fled Syria as the Islamist-led rebels swept into the capital, bringing a spectacular end on Sunday to five decades of brutal rule by his clan.

“The only interest we have is the security of Israel,” he told a news conference in Jerusalem.

Indonesia said it was “deeply concerned” about the humanitarian impact of the recent developments in Syria that saw decades-long president Bashar al-Assad ousted, calling for a peaceful transition of power and further urging its citizens to exercise caution.

Launched barely two weeks ago, the operation's speedy success in achieving its initial goal - seizing Syria's second city, Aleppo - took almost everybody by surprise. From there, in a little more than a week, the rebel alliance reached Damascus and on Sunday put an end to five decades of Assad family rule.

Russia's Foreign Ministry said earlier that Assad had left Syria and given orders for a peaceful transfer of power, after rebel fighters raced into Damascus unopposed on Sunday, ending nearly six decades of his family's iron-fisted rule.

The Syrian strongman had for nearly 14 years held off an uprising that many believed had been exhausted. But his downfall followed a series of battlefield convulsions for other allies of Iran.

Crowds toured Assad's luxurious home after the rebels declared he had fled, a spectacular end to five decades of brutal Baath party government.

Six Indonesian medical personnel working at the Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza have evacuated safely to Central Gaza, where they resume their humanitarian mission at the Public Aid Hospital.

The Israeli military on Friday denied claims it had struck or entered Kamal Adwan Hospital, saying it was operating next to the facility. 

The Foreign Ministry has declared the highest alert status for eight provinces in Syria, where a  rebel insurgency group has overtaken key cities in the past week, adding that Indonesian citizens should not delay in following the government’s evacuation plan. 

"We disagree with the conclusions of such a report. We have said previously and continue to find that the allegations of genocide are unfounded," State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters.

The French leader arrived in Saudi Arabia on Monday for a three-day state visit just as a political crisis threatens to topple the French government.

Since Israel and Hezbollah ceased fire on Wednesday, people have been taking stock of devastation across wide areas of the country hammered by Israeli attacks; from Beirut's southern suburbs to the southern border region and the Bekaa Valley.

The announcement came two days after a ceasefire went into effect between Israel and the Lebanese group Hezbollah, a Hamas ally

The opposition fighters, led by the Islamist militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, carried out a surprise sweep through government-held towns this week and reached Aleppo nearly a decade after having been forced out by Assad and his allies.

Palestinians are suffering "on a scale that has to be seen to be truly grasped", a UN official says after a visit to the devastated Palestinian territory.

The truce brings to a halt a war that has killed thousands in Lebanon and resulted in mass displacement on both sides of the border.

The truce, which began at 4:00 am (0200 GMT), should bring to a halt a war that has forced tens of thousands of people in Israel and hundreds of thousands more in Lebanon to flee their homes.