Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi al-Jalali on Sunday called for free elections in Syria shortly after militants deposed President Bashar al-Assad, who immediately fled the country. 

The rebels said Mr al-Assad was out of power after seizing control of capital Damascus on Sunday, ending Mr al-Assad’s grip on power that lasted more than two decades, including 13 years of civil war. 

The Islamist rebels’ success also marked a defeat for Russia’s influence in the region, coming nearly three years after the country’s debacle in Ukraine. 

The rebels seized several foreign embassies across Damascus on Sunday, including Iranian embassy, Press TV reported. Prisons were also broken into to free prisoners, especially those who were detained since the 2011 uprising, according to videos shared on social media. 

Mr Ghazi al-Jalali said a new election would help the Syrian people choose a leader they want, rather than being forced to endure another long era of dictatorship. 

A new election could prove complex for a country that hasn’t seen democracy in years, and President-elect Donald Trump said on Saturday that the United States might not be offering assistance to Syrians. 

Mr Trump said on his Truth Social platform that the U.S. would stay out of Syria’s business, saying Russia and Iran should instead deal with the crisis they helped usher in.