The White House has announced that US President Joe Biden will address the extraordinary fall of the Assad regime in Syria in remarks on Sunday. This comes following a stunning and rapid rebel advance in the region.
Biden is scheduled to speak at 1 p.m. ET in the Roosevelt Room, as per updated guidance released by the White House. The president has already received an update on the situation Sunday morning from his national security team.
This will mark Biden's first substantive remarks on the latest developments in the conflict, as US officials had previously refrained from direct involvement in the war. Notably, one of the key rebel groups leading the offensive, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), has been designated by the US as a terrorist organization.
The Biden administration is acutely aware that the end of the Assad regime and the subsequent events could potentially reshape the balance of power in the Middle East.
