Plane carrying Assad vanishes over Syria as Russia denies crash claims

A plane believed to be carrying Syrian President Bashar al-Assad vanished over Syria on Sunday after making a sudden U-turn. Initial reports suggested it may have been shot down, but Russia denied claims that Assad was killed in a crash. Russian state media later reported that Assad and his family had arrived in Moscow and been granted asylum. This follows a significant rebel advance in Syria, leading to celebrations in the streets as Assad's regime appeared to collapse. Rebels declared that Assad had been overthrown, and reports indicated that prisoners were released from detention facilities. The situation has prompted Russia to request an emergency UN Security Council meeting to discuss developments in Syria.