A file photo of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad as he chairs the central committee of the ruling Baath party in Damascus on Oct 7, 2018. - AFP
AMMAN, Jordan: Syria's Bashar al-Assad boarded a plane in Damascus for an unknown destination early on Sunday, with speculation that he may have died after the plane disappeared from radar screens after making an abrupt U-turn.
Assad has not spoken in public since the sudden rebel advance a week ago, when insurgents seized northern Aleppo in a surprise attack before marching into a succession of cities as frontlines crumbled.
