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Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler, who was aggressive in his oversight of cryptocurrencies and other financial markets, will step down from his post on Jan. 20. Gensler pushed changes that he said protected investors, but the industry and many Republicans bristled at what they saw as overreach. President-elect Donald Trump had promised during his campaign that he would remove Gensler. But Gensler on Thursday announced that he would be stepping down from his post on the day that Trump is inaugurated. Bitcoin has jumped 40% since Trump’s victory. It hit new highs Thursday and was nearing $100,000. Bitcoin moved notably higher still after Gensler's resignation was announced. Gensler's stance on the rise of cryptocurrencies was captured during a speech he gave during the first year of his chairmanship in 2021 where he described the market as “the Wild West.” “This asset class is rife with fraud, scams, and abuse in certain applications,” he said in a speech at the Aspen Security Forum. “There’s a great deal of hype and spin about how crypto assets work. In many cases, investors aren’t able to get rigorous, balanced, and complete information.” Under Gensler, the SEC brought actions against players in the crypto industry for fraud , wash trading and other violations, including as recently as last month when the commission brought fraud charges against three companies purporting to be market makers, along with nine individuals for trying to manipulate various crypto markets. Yet access to cryptocurrencies became more widespread under Gensler. In January, the SEC approved exchange-traded funds that track the spot price of bitcoin. With such ETFs, investors could get easier access to bitcoin without the huge overlays required to buy it directly. Gensler, however, acknowledged the SEC had denied earlier, similar applications for such ETFs, including Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, among the first to eventually be approved by the SEC. “Circumstances, however, have changed,” Gensler said, pointing to a ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia that said the SEC failed to adequately explain its reasoning in rejecting Grayscale’s proposal. Even there, Gensler made sure not to endorse the merits of bitcoin. He pointed to how ETFs that hold precious metals are tracking prices of things that have “consumer and industrial users, while in contrast bitcoin is primarily a speculative, volatile asset that’s also used for illicit activity including ransomware, money laundering, sanction evasion, and terrorist financing.” Gensler was tested early in his tenure with the rise of the meme stock phenomenon that shocked the financial system in early 2021. Earlier this year, the SEC under Gensler pushed Wall Street to speed up how long it takes for trades of stocks to settle, one of the areas where the commission’s staff recommended changes following the reckoning created by GameStop , one of the first meme stocks. In the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic, hordes of smaller-pocketed and novice investors suddenly piled into the stock of the struggling video-game retailer. During the height of the frenzy, several brokerages barred customers from buying GameStop after the clearinghouse that settles their trades demanded more cash to cover the increased risk created by its highly volatile price. In May 2024, new rules meant broker-dealers have to fully settle their trades within one business day of the trade date, down from the previous two. Critics of the SEC under Gensler have called many of the agency's proposals overly burdensome. The investment industry, for example, is pushing against a proposal to force some advisers and companies disclose more about their environmental, social and governance practices, otherwise known as ESG. Critics say the proposal is overly complex and increases the risk of investor confusion, while imposing unnecessary burdens and costs on funds. On Thursday, Gensler stood by the SEC's track record under his direction. “The staff and the Commission are deeply mission-driven, focused on protecting investors, facilitating capital formation, and ensuring that the markets work for investors and issuers alike," Gensler said in prepared remarks. “The staff comprises true public servants." Gensler previously served as Chair of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, leading the Obama Administration’s reform of the $400 trillion swaps market. He also was senior advisor to U.S. Senator Paul Sarbanes in writing the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (2002) and was undersecretary of the Treasury for Domestic Finance and assistant secretary of the Treasury from 1997-2001.(CNN) — President-elect Donald Trump urged the Supreme Court to pause a controversial ban on TikTok that is set to take effect next month, telling the justices in a legal filing Friday that a delay would allow his administration to “pursue a negotiated resolution.” Trump’s request for a delay in implementing the ban puts him at odds with the Biden administration, which defended the law in its own brief Friday, warning of “grave” national security concerns about TikTok’s continued operation in the US. In one of the most significant pending cases before the Supreme Court, the justices must weigh whether the TikTok ban Congress approved in April violates the First Amendment. The court has already scheduled two hours of oral argument in the case for January 10. The court was flooded with roughly two dozen briefs Friday from groups and officials who have landed on both sides of that question. Trump is technically not a party in the case —he filed a “friend-of-the-court” brief, as did several outside groups, members of Congress and others who wanted to offer their perspective. But given that the ban is set to take effect January 19, a day before his inauguration, Trump’s position may carry significant weight with the justices. In his brief, Trump technically took no position on the underlying First Amendment questions posed by the case, but he urged the court to delay the January 19 effective date so that his administration could look for a way to resolve the issue without a ban. Trump suggested the court pause the ban’s effective date “to allow his incoming administration to pursue a negotiated resolution that could prevent a nationwide shutdown of TikTok, thus preserving the First Amendment rights of tens of millions of Americans, while also addressing the government’s national security concerns.” The incoming president has sent mixed signals in the past about his views on TikTok but most recently vowed to “save” the platform. Trump, who met with TikTok’s CEO this month, will be inaugurated January 20, a day after the ban is set to take effect unless the Supreme Court intervenes. Congress passed the ban with bipartisan support in response to years of concern that TikTok’s Chinese parent company poses a national security risk because, as the Biden administration warned in its own brief Friday, it can both collect data on users and manipulate the content those users see. The law allows the app to continue in the US if it divests from Chinese ownership. The law gives the sitting president broad power to decide whether the company has adequately split from its owners. Trump’s brief, his first to the Supreme Court since winning the election, claimed he is operating with a “powerful electoral mandate” and that he is uniquely positioned to resolve the TikTok controversy. At one point he described himself as “one of the most powerful, prolific, and influential users of social media in history.” “The First Amendment implications of the federal government’s effective shuttering of a social-media platform used by 170 million Americans are sweeping and troubling,” Trump’s brief stated. “There are valid concerns that the act may set a dangerous global precedent by exercising the extraordinary power to shut down an entire social-media platform based, in large part, on concerns about disfavored speech on that platform.” Earlier Friday, President Joe Biden’s administration and a bipartisan group of ex-government officials — including some who once worked for Trump — urged the Supreme Court to uphold the ban on TikTok , claiming that the platform’s ties to China pose a “grave” threat to American security. “TikTok collects vast swaths of data about tens of millions of Americans,” the administration told the Supreme Court on Friday. And, it said, China “could covertly manipulate the platform to advance its geopolitical interests and harm the United States — by, for example, sowing discord and disinformation during a crisis.” The written arguments submitted to the Supreme Court on Friday underscore a tension between national security and free speech at a time when 170 million Americans use TikTok for news and entertainment. Trump acknowledged in his brief Friday that his administration had also raised concerns about the platform and had signed an executive order limiting the app. When Trump was president in 2020, he signed an executive order to effectively ban TikTok, but it was halted in the courts. But, he argued Friday, the “unfortunate timing” of the law’s effective date “interferes” with his ability to “manage the United States’ foreign policy and to pursue a resolution to both protect national security and save a social-media platform that provides a popular vehicle for 170 million Americans to exercise their core First Amendment rights.” Delaying the law’s effective date, Trump said, could “obviate the need for this court to decide the historically challenging First Amendment question.” Among the former Trump officials who filed legal briefs Friday supporting the Biden administration’s position and the TikTok ban were Jeff Sessions, Trump’s first attorney general, and Ajit Pai, the Trump-appointed chairman of the Federal Communications Commission from 2017 to 2021. TikTok told the court in its own brief Friday that the federal government is attempting to shut down “one of the most significant speech platforms in America” and said that lawmakers were required by the First Amendment to consider other options, such as disclosures about the company’s ownership. “History and precedent teach that, even when national security is at stake, speech bans must be Congress’s last resort,” the company said. Groups advocating for First Amendment protections — including the American Civil Liberties Union and the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University — urged the Supreme Court to look beyond the government’s national security claims and assess the ban’s impact on Americans’ freedom to view whatever online content they choose. “Restricting access to foreign media to protect against purported foreign manipulation is a practice that has long been associated with repressive regimes,” the Knight First Amendment Institute wrote. “The government has no legitimate interest in banning Americans from accessing foreign speech — even if the speech comprises foreign propaganda or reflects foreign manipulation.” The ACLU, similarly, warned of a “far reaching disruption in Americans’ ability to engage with the content and audiences of their choice online” if the Supreme Court upholds the ban. Earlier this month, a federal appeals court in Washington, DC, unanimously upheld the ban in a ruling that said the government had a national security interest in regulating the platform. The quick-turn timing of the briefing reflected the highly unusual speed with which the Supreme Court agreed to consider the case. The court plucked the appeal off its emergency docket — where TikTok was seeking a temporary pause of the ban — and agreed to delve into the substantive First Amendment questions about the law. Trump’s brief was filed by D. John Sauer, whom Trump has said he intends to nominate as solicitor general and who, if confirmed, would represent the Trump administration at the Supreme Court. “There are compelling reasons to stay the act’s deadline,” Sauer argued, “and allow President Trump to seek a negotiated resolution once in office.” The-CNN-Wire TM & © 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. 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BEIRUT — Israel's military launched airstrikes across Lebanon on Monday, unleashing explosions throughout the country and killing at least 31 while Israeli leaders appeared to be closing in on a negotiated ceasefire with the Hezbollah militant group. Israeli strikes hit commercial and residential buildings in Beirut as well as in the port city of Tyre. Military officials claimed they targeted areas known as Hezbollah strongholds. They issued evacuation orders for Beirut's southern suburbs, and strikes landed across the city, including meters from a Lebanese police base and the city's largest public park. The barrage came as officials indicated they were nearing agreement on a ceasefire, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Security Cabinet prepared to discuss an offer on the table. Bulldozers remove the rubble of a destroyed building Monday that was hit in an Israeli airstrike in Dahiyeh, in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon. Foreign ministers from the world’s leading industrialized nations also expressed cautious optimism Monday about possible progress on a ceasefire. People are also reading... Recap: Here's how Joey Graziadei will win 'Dancing with the Stars' They fell in love with Beatrice. So they opened a store in downtown. At the courthouse, Nov. 23, 2024 Kidnapping in Nebraska prompted police chase that ended with 3 dead on I-29 in Missouri Zitel bound over to district court in death of child Courthouse lighting ceremony planned for Sunday No change in bond amounts in child abuse death case Clabaugh family presents Outstanding Educator award Harmonizers to perform At the courthouse, Nov. 16, 2024 Inside Nebraska volleyball’s finishing kick for a Big Ten title: First up, Wisconsin Chamberlain among seven inducted into Nebraska Baseball HOF Just Askin': Dana Holgorsen noncommittal on future, ranking a big week for Nebraska Athletics How one Virginia woman persevered through abuse, oppression in Christian 'cult' Streaming review: 'Landman' gives Billy Bob Thornton a real gusher of a series “Knock on wood,” Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said as he opened the Group of Seven meeting outside Rome. “We are perhaps close to a ceasefire in Lebanon," he said. "Let's hope it's true and that there's no backing down at the last-minute.” A ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon was foremost on the agenda of the G7 meeting in Fiuggi, outside Rome, that gathered ministers from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States, in the last G7 encounter of the Biden administration. For the first time, the G7 ministers were joined by their counterparts from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, as well as the Secretary General of the Arab League. Thick smoke, flames and debris erupt Monday from an Israeli airstrike that targeted a building in Tayouneh, Beirut, Lebanon. Meanwhile, massive explosions lit up Lebanon's skies with flashes of orange, sending towering plumes of smoke into the air as Israeli airstrikes pounded Beirut's southern suburbs Monday. The blasts damaged buildings and left shattered glass and debris scattered across nearby streets. Some of the strikes landed close to central Beirut and near Christian neighborhoods and other targets where Israel issued evacuation warnings, including in Tyre and Nabatiyeh province. Israeli airstrikes also hit the northeast Baalbek-Hermel region without warning. Lebanon's Health Ministry said Monday that 26 people were killed in southern Lebanon, four in the eastern Baalbek-Hermel province and one in Choueifat, a neighborhood in Beirut's southern suburbs that was not subjected to evacuation warnings on Monday. The deaths brought the total toll to 3,768 killed in Lebanon throughout 13 months of war between Israel and Hezbollah and nearly two months since Israel launched its ground invasion. Many of those killed since the start of the war between Israel and Hezbollah have been civilians, and health officials said some of the recovered bodies were so severely damaged that DNA testing would be required to confirm their identities. Israel claims to have killed more than 2,000 Hezbollah members. Lebanon's Health Ministry says the war has displaced 1.2 million people. Destroyed buildings stand Monday in the area of a village in southern Lebanon as seen from northern Israel. Israeli ground forces invaded southern Lebanon in early October, meeting heavy resistance in a narrow strip of land along the border. The military previously exchanged attacks across the border with Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militant group that began firing rockets into Israel the day after the war in Gaza began last year. Lebanese politicians have decried the ongoing airstrikes and said they are impeding ceasefire negotiations. The country's deputy parliament speaker accused Israel of ramping up its bombardment to pressure Lebanon to make concessions in indirect ceasefire negotiations with Hezbollah. Elias Bousaab, an ally of the militant group, said Monday that the pressure has increased because "we are close to the hour that is decisive regarding reaching a ceasefire." Israeli officials voiced similar optimism Monday about prospects for a ceasefire. Mike Herzog, the country's ambassador to Washington, earlier in the day told Israeli Army Radio that several points had yet to be finalized. Though any deal would require agreement from the government, Herzog said Israel and Hezbollah were "close to a deal." "It can happen within days," he said. Israeli officials have said the sides are close to an agreement that would include withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon and a pullback of Hezbollah fighters from the Israeli border. But several sticking points remain. A member of the Israeli security forces inspects an impact site Sunday after a rocket fired from Lebanon hit an area in Rinatya, outskirts of Tel Aviv, Israel. After previous hopes for a ceasefire were dashed, U.S. officials cautioned that negotiations were not yet complete and noted that there could be last-minute hitches that either delay or destroy an agreement. "Nothing is done until everything is done," White House national security spokesman John Kirby said Monday. The proposal under discussion to end the fighting calls for an initial two-month ceasefire during which Israeli forces would withdraw from Lebanon and Hezbollah would end its armed presence along the southern border south of the Litani River. The withdrawals would be accompanied by an influx of thousands more Lebanese army troops, who have been largely sidelined in the war, to patrol the border area along with an existing U.N. peacekeeping force. Western diplomats and Israeli officials said Israel demands the right to strike in Lebanon if it believes Hezbollah is violating the terms. The Lebanese government says such an arrangement would authorize violations of the country's sovereignty. Shoppers say they want eco-friendly products, so why aren't they buying them? Shoppers say they want eco-friendly products, so why aren't they buying them? On paper, being more sustainable and eco-friendly while shopping sounds great—so why don't more people do it? There is growing consumer consciousness about the environmental impact of where people choose to shop and the sustainability of the products they buy. According to McKinsey, over 60% of individuals surveyed in 2020 said they would be willing to pay more for a product that is packaged in an eco-friendly way. Since 2019, products marketed as being environmentally sustainable have seen a 28% growth in revenue compared to 20% for products with no such marketing, a 2023 McKinsey and NielsenIQ report found. Much of this is thanks to the preferences and attitudes of Gen Z, who, on average, care more than their older counterparts about being informed shoppers. The younger generation also has more social justice and environmental awareness altogether. Shoppers are willing to spend around 9.7% more on a product they know is sourced or manufactured sustainably, with 46% saying they would do so explicitly because they want to reduce their environmental footprint, according to a 2024 PwC report. Sustainable practices consumers look for from companies include production methods, packaging, and water conservation. But despite the growing consciousness around being more environmentally responsible, consumer actions don't always align with their values. In psychology, this is defined as the "say-do gap": the phenomenon wherein people openly express concern and intention around an issue, but fail to take tangible action to make a change. According to the Harvard Business Review in 2019, most consumers (65%) say they want to buy from brands that promote sustainability, but only 1 in 4 follow through. So why don't people actually shop sustainably, despite how much they express a preference for eco-friendly products—and how can we close the gap? The RealReal examined reports from the Harvard Business Review and other sources to explore why some shoppers want to buy sustainably but struggle to follow through. This lack of action isn't due to a lack of caring—in many cases, it's hard to know how to be a sustainable consumer and other factors are often outside of shoppers' control. But the more people shop sustainably, the easier and more accessible that market will be for everyone—making it much easier for folks to buy aligned with their values. Barriers to sustainable shopping There are many obstacles preventing shoppers from upholding eco-friendly habits as much as they may want to—but not all of these barriers are necessarily real, or accurately understood. Shopping sustainably simply isn't convenient or accessible for many. Those who live in apartment buildings are 50% less likely to recycle , according to Ipsos. Reasons for this can vary from lack of space to buildings being excluded altogether because of recycling contamination issues. Many believe that sustainable products are too expensive or of a lower quality. The former is often true, which does create a hurdle for many: The manufacturing processes and materials for sustainable products are pricey. For instance, organic cotton requires an intensive production process free of certain chemicals or pesticides; by definition, true eco-friendly products can't be mass-produced, further upping their price tag. Using recycled materials for packaging, or obtaining an eco certification, can also be expensive. However, although the narrative of eco-friendly products being more expensive is true, there is often more of an effort to use better quality materials that last longer than their noneco-friendly counterparts. This could end up saving consumers money in the long run: By paying more upfront, they can get more wear out of sustainable fashion, for instance. There is also undeniable political rhetoric surrounding eco-friendly products—however, despite many Conservative politicians decrying sustainable products, members of all generations are increasingly choosing to prioritize shopping sustainably regardless of their political affiliation, according to research from NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business . This finding shows a trend toward seeing sustainability as a nonpartisan subject everyone can benefit from, no matter where they lie on the political spectrum. Some might think eco-friendly clothing, in particular, is not fashion-forward; after all, many of the top clothing retailers in the world partake in fast fashion. However, brands are increasingly being recognized as 'cool' and 'trendy' for supporting environmentally ethical practices, particularly as younger generations prioritize sustainability, as noted before. Many increasingly popular online stores are taking advantage of this paradigm shift by offering secondhand shopping options that are not only fashionable, but also more affordable, like ThredUp or Poshmark. Additionally, many legacy large-name brands are hopping on the sustainability movement and are gaining appreciation from loyal customers. Amazon's Climate Pledge Friendly program partners with third-party certification bodies to make it easier for shoppers to identify eco-friendly products as they browse the website. H&M's newly launched H&M Rewear program debuts a resale platform that allows the resale of all clothing brands—not just their own. Similarly, Patagonia's Worn Wear program allows shoppers to trade in and buy used gear and clothing. The federal government is also working to close this gap. The Environmental Protection Agency's Safer Choice program is attempting to make sustainable shopping easier for consumers and companies alike. It includes a directory of certified products, a list of safer chemicals to look out for on labels, a "Safer Choice" label that products can earn to denote they are eco-friendly, and resources for manufacturers looking to adopt more sustainable practices. Most of all, though, the biggest way shoppers can shift toward sustainable shopping is through their behaviors and attitudes amongst their peers and communities. Studies show that humans largely care what others think of their actions; the more shoppers make environmentally conscious shopping the norm, the more others will follow suit. From an economic perspective, the more consumers shop eco-friendly, the more affordable and accessible these products will become, too: Sustainable products are currently more expensive because they are not in high demand. Once demand rises, production rates and prices can lower, making these products more accessible for all. Story editing by Carren Jao. Additional editing by Kelly Glass. Copy editing by Kristen Wegrzyn. This story originally appeared on The RealReal and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio. Get local news delivered to your inbox!
Charged of alleged $265 mn bribe plot New Delhi: The combined market valuation of all ten listed Adani Group firms fell sharply by Rs 2.19 lakh crore on Thursday, more than double of what the conglomerate had lost when the US short seller Hindenburg brought out a damning report in January 2023. Shares of Adani Group firms fell sharply as billionaire Gautam Adani was charged by US prosecutors for allegedly being part of a scheme to pay $265 million (about Rs 2,200 crore) bribe to Indian officials in exchange for favourable terms for solar power contracts. Adani, India’s second-richest man, and seven others including his nephew Sagar have been charged with paying bribes to unidentified officials of state governments in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha to buy expensive solar power, potentially earning more than $2 billion profit over 20 years. Adani Group denied charges of paying bribes, saying the allegations by US prosecutors are baseless. The group said it is compliant with all laws. It said all possible legal recourse will be sought. “The allegations made by the US Department of Justice and the US Securities and Exchange Commission against directors of Adani Green are baseless and denied,” the group spokesperson said in a statement. The stock of the group’s flagship firm, Adani Enterprises, plunged 22.61%, Adani Energy Solutions tanked 20%, Adani Green Energy plummeted 18.80%, Adani Ports dived 13.53%, Ambuja Cements cracked 11.98% and Adani Total Gas tumbled 10.40% on the BSE. Shares of Adani Wilmar declined 9.98%, Adani Power slumped 9.15%, ACC fell 7.29% and NDTV dipped 0.06%. Meanwhile, Kenya’s President William Ruto said on Thursday that he has cancelled multimillion-dollar airport expansion and energy deals with Gautam Adani after the US bribery and fraud indictments. Ruto said in a state of the nation address the decision was made “based on new information provided by our investigative agencies and partner nations”, without naming the United States. The Adani Group had been in the process of signing an agreement that would modernise Kenya’s main airport in the capital, Nairobi, with an additional runway and terminal constructed, in exchange for the group running the airport for 30 years. The widely criticised deal had sparked anti-Adani protests in Kenya and a strike by airport workers, who said it would lead to degraded working conditions and job losses in some cases. The Adani Group had also been awarded a deal to construct power transmission lines in Kenya, East Africa’s business hub.
Mike Tyson's son defends his father from federal crime: Where's the evidence?Griezmann double makes it nine wins in a row for Atletico after stunning 4-3 victory over Sevilla
DAMASCUS, Syria — Ousted Syrian leader Bashar Assad fled to Moscow and received asylum from his longtime ally, Russian media said Sunday, hours after a stunning rebel advance seized control of Damascus and ended his family’s 50 years of iron rule . Thousands of Syrians poured into streets echoing with celebratory gunfire and waved the revolutionary flag in scenes that recalled the early days of the Arab Spring uprising, before a brutal crackdown and the rise of an insurgency plunged the country into a nearly 14-year civil war. Syrian opposition fighters celebrate Sunday after the Syrian government collapsed in Damascus, Syria. Omar Sanadiki, Associated Press The swift events raised questions about the future of the country and the wider region. “Our approach has shifted the balance of power in the Middle East," President Joe Biden said , crediting action by the U.S. and its allies for weakening Syria’s backers — Russia, Iran and Hezbollah. He called the fall of Assad a “fundamental act of justice” but also a “moment of risk and uncertainty,” and said rebel groups are “saying the right things now” but the U.S. would assess their actions. Russia requested an emergency session of the U.N. Security Council to discuss Syria, according to Dmitry Polyansky, its deputy ambassador to the U.N., in a post on Telegram. Syrian President Bashar Assad listens May 19, 2023, during the Arab summit in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Saudi Press Agency The arrival of Assad and his family in Moscow was reported by Russian agencies Tass and RIA, citing an unidentified source at the Kremlin. A spokesman there didn't immediately respond to questions. RIA also said Syrian insurgents had guaranteed the security of Russian military bases and diplomatic posts in Syria. Earlier, Russia said Assad left Syria after negotiations with rebel groups and that he gave instructions to transfer power peacefully. The leader of Syria's biggest rebel faction, Abu Mohammed al-Golani , is poised to chart the country’s future. The former al-Qaida commander cut ties with the group years ago and says he embraces pluralism and religious tolerance. His Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group, or HTS, is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S. and the U.N. In his first public appearance since fighters entered the Damascus suburbs Saturday, al-Golani visited the Umayyad Mosque and described Assad's fall as “a victory to the Islamic nation.” Calling himself by his given name, Ahmad al-Sharaa, and not his nom de guerre, he said Assad had made Syria “a farm for Iran’s greed.” A man tries to take a lamp Sunday as people search for belongings in the ransacked private residence of Syrian President Bashar Assad in the Malkeh district of Damascus, Syria. Hussein Malla, Associated Press The rebels face the daunting task of healing bitter divisions in a country ravaged by war and split among armed factions. Turkey-backed opposition fighters are battling U.S.-allied Kurdish forces in the north, and the Islamic State group is still active in remote areas. Syrian state television broadcast a rebel statement saying Assad was overthrown and all prisoners had been released. They urged people to preserve the institutions of “the free Syrian state,” and announced a curfew in Damascus from 4 p.m. to 5 a.m. An online video purported to show rebels freeing dozens of women at the notorious Saydnaya prison, where rights groups say thousands were tortured and killed . At least one small child was seen among them. “This happiness will not be completed until I can see my son out of prison and know where is he,” said one relative, Bassam Masr. "I have been searching for him for two hours. He has been detained for 13 years.” Rebel commander Anas Salkhadi appeared on state TV and sought to reassure religious and ethnic minorities, saying: “Syria is for everyone, no exceptions. Syria is for Druze, Sunnis, Alawites, and all sects.” “We will not deal with people the way the Assad family did," he added. People gather Sunday in Manbij, Syria, to celebrate the fall of the Syrian government. Ugur Yildirim, Dia Damascus residents prayed in mosques and celebrated in squares, calling, “God is great.” People chanted anti-Assad slogans and honked car horns. Teenage boys picked up weapons apparently discarded by security forces and fired into the air. Soldiers and police fled their posts and looters broke into the Defense Ministry. Families wandered the presidential palace, walking by damaged portraits of Assad. Other parts of the capital were empty and shops were closed. “It’s like a dream. I need someone to wake me up," said opposition fighter Abu Laith, adding the rebels were welcomed in Damascus with “love.” Rebels stood guard at the Justice Ministry, where Judge Khitam Haddad said he and colleagues were protecting documents. Outside, residents sought information about relatives who disappeared under Assad. Listen now and subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | RSS Feed | SoundStack | All Of Our Podcasts The rebels “have felt the pain of the people,” said one woman, giving only her first name, Heba. She worried about possible revenge killings by the rebels, many of whom appeared to be underage. Syria’s historically pro-government newspaper al-Watan called it “a new page for Syria. We thank God for not shedding more blood.” It added that media workers should not be blamed for publishing past government statements ordered from above. A statement from the Alawite sect that formed the core of Assad's base called on young Syrians to be “calm, rational and prudent and not to be dragged into what tears apart the unity of our country.” The rebels mainly come from the Sunni Muslim majority in Syria, which also has sizable Druze, Christian and Kurdish communities. In Qamishli in the northeast, a Kurdish man slapped a statue of the late leader Hafez Assad with his shoe. An opposition fighter steps on a broken bust of the late Syrian President Hafez Assad on Sunday in Damascus, Syria. Hussein Malla, Associated Press The rebel advances since Nov. 27 were the largest in recent years, and saw the cities of Aleppo, Hama and Homs fall within days as the Syrian army melted away. The road to Damascus from the Lebanese border was littered with military uniforms and charred armored vehicles. Russia, Iran and Hezbollah, which provided crucial support to Assad, abandoned him as they reeled from other conflicts. Syrian opposition fighters take a selfie Sunday at the damaged entrance of the Iranian embassy in Damascus, Syria. Hussein Malla, Associated Press The end of Assad’s rule was a major blow to Iran and its proxies, already weakened by conflict with Israel . Iran said Syrians should decide their future “without destructive, coercive, foreign intervention.” The Iranian Embassy in Damascus was ransacked after apparently having been abandoned. Hossein Akbari, Iran’s ambassador to Syria, said it was “effectively impossible” to help the Syrian government after it admitted the insurgents' military superiority. Speaking on Iranian state media from an undisclosed location, he said Syria's government decided Saturday night to hand over power peacefully. “When the army and the people could not resist, it was a good decision to let go to prevent bloodshed and destruction,” Akbari said, adding that some of his colleagues left Syria before sunrise. Syrians gather Sunday to celebrate the arrival of opposition fighters in Damascus, Syria. Omar Sanadiki, Associated Press Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, speaking on state TV, said there were concerns about the “possibility of civil war, disintegration of Syria, total collapse and turning Syria into a shelter for terrorists.” Syrian Prime Minister Mohammed Ghazi Jalali has said the government was ready to “extend its hand” to the opposition and turn its functions over to a transitional government. A video on Syrian opposition media showed armed men escorting him from his office to a hotel. Syrians celebrate the fall of Bashar Assad's government Sunday in the town of Bar Elias, Lebanon, near the border with Syria. Hassan Ammar, Associated Press The U.N.’s special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, has called for urgent talks in Geneva to ensure an “orderly political transition.” The Gulf nation of Qatar, a key regional mediator, hosted an emergency meeting of foreign ministers and top officials from eight countries with interests in Syria late Saturday, including Iran, Saudi Arabia, Russia and Turkey. Majed al-Ansari, Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, said they agreed on the need “to engage all parties on the ground," including the HTS, and that the main concern is “stability and safe transition.” Israeli soldiers walk Sunday near armored vehicles parked along the so-called Alpha Line that separates the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights from Syria. Matias Delacroix, Associated Press Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israeli troops had seized a buffer zone in the Golan Heights established in 1974, saying it was to protect Israeli residents after Syrian troops abandoned positions. Israel’s military later warned residents of five southern Syria communities to stay home for their safety, and didn’t respond to questions. Israel captured the Golan in the 1967 Mideast war and later annexed it. The international community, except for the U.S., views it as occupied, and the Arab League on Sunday condemned what it called Israel’s efforts to take advantage of Assad’s downfall to occupy more territory. ___ Sewell reported from Beirut. Associated Press writers Bassem Mroue, Sarah El Deeb and Kareem Chehayeb in Beirut; Samar Kassaballi, Omar Sanadiki and Ghaith Alsayed in Damascus; Jon Gambrell in Manama, Bahrain; Josef Federman in Doha, Qatar; and Tia Goldenberg in Jerusalem, contributed. People wave Syrian opposition flags at City Hall Square in Copenhagen, Denmark, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (Emil Nicolai Helms/Ritzau Scanpix via AP) Emil Nicolai Helms People attend a rally celebrating the fall of Syrian President Bashar Assad's government, at central Syntagma square, in Athens, Greece, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis) Yorgos Karahalis People wave Syrian opposition flags at City Hall Square in Copenhagen, Denmark, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (Emil Nicolai Helms/Ritzau Scanpix via AP) Emil Nicolai Helms People gather to react following the fall of Syrian president Bashar Assad’s government, in Trafalgar Square, in London, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali) Alberto Pezzali People wave Syrian opposition flags at City Hall Square in Copenhagen, Denmark, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (Emil Nicolai Helms/Ritzau Scanpix via AP) Emil Nicolai Helms People gather to react following the fall of Syrian president Bashar Assad’s government, in Trafalgar Square, in London, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali) Alberto Pezzali People attend a rally celebrating the fall of Syrian President Bashar Assad's government, at central Syntagma square, in Athens, Greece, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis) Yorgos Karahalis Members of the Syrian community in Finland wave a Syrian flag and celebrate in Helsinki, Finland, Dec. 8, 2024. (Roni Rekomaa/Lehtikuva via AP) Roni Rekomaa People attend a rally celebrating the fall of Syrian President Bashar Assad's government, at central Syntagma square, in Athens, Greece, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis) Yorgos Karahalis Syrians wave opposition flags and give out sweets during a spontaneous rally in Wuppertal, Germany, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, following the fall of Syrian president Bashar Assad’s government. (Christoph Reichwein/dpa/dpa via AP) Christoph Reichwein Syrians celebrate the fall of the Assad regime in Syria at a demonstration in Stockholm, Sweden, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (Jonas Ekstroemer/TT News Agency via AP) Jonas Ekströmer A Syrian man waves a flag during a spontaneous demonstration celebrating the fall of the Assad regime, in Nicosia, Cyprus, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias) Petros Karadjias People gather to celebrate the Syrian government fall at Faith mosque in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) Emrah Gurel Syrians wave Syrian opposition flags at a rally in Wuppertal, Germany, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, following the fall of Syrian president Bashar Assad’s government. (Christoph Reichwein/dpa/dpa via AP) Christoph Reichwein People wave Syrian opposition flags at City Hall Square in Copenhagen, Denmark, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (Emil Nicolai Helms/Ritzau Scanpix via AP) Emil Nicolai Helms Syrians living in France gather on Republique square after the Syrian government fell early today in a stunning end to the 50-year rule of the Assad family, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024 in Paris. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard) Aurelien Morissard People gather to celebrate the Syrian government fall at Faith mosque in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) Emrah Gurel People gather to celebrate the Syrian government's fall, in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) Emrah Gurel Syrians living in France hug during a rally on Republique square after the Syrian government fell early today in a stunning end to the 50-year rule of the Assad family, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024 in Paris. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard) Aurelien Morissard People gather to react following the fall of Syrian president Bashar Assad’s government, in Trafalgar Square, in London, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali) Alberto Pezzali People gather to celebrate the Syrian government fall at Faith mosque in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel) Emrah Gurel People attend a rally celebrating the fall of Syrian President Bashar Assad's government, at central Syntagma square, in Athens, Greece, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis) Yorgos Karahalis A Syrian man waves a flag during a spontaneous demonstration celebrating the fall of the Assad regime in Nicosia, Cyprus, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias) Petros KaradjiasMikel Arteta reveals Arsenal star Bukayo Saka will miss ‘more than two months’