The dictator’s presidential palace was stormed and looted while statues of the Assad dictators were torn down across the country.
He later claimed asylum in Russia, prompting celebrations across the country and the world following 14 years of civil war.
In that time Al-Assad, with the help of Russian air support and Iranian backed fighters, is believed to have killed hundreds of thousands of his own people.
In 2013, reports emerged of the dictator using chemical weapons in the rebel stronghold of Ghouta, crossing a “red line” declared by US president Barack Obama the previous year.
Despite this, the US and partners failed to act, with parliament voting against military intervention in the region.