There are Turkish-backed rebels and Sunni Muslim jihadists in the north, Kurds ruling over much of Syria’s east, and Jordan-backed militants in the south, among others. These groups fought a civil war against Assad for almost 14 years and will now contend to shape the country’s future without him.

Countries across Europe have reacted to the news of Bashar al-Assad’s fall from power by pausing decisions on Syrian refugee applications. The influx of refugees from Syria following the outbreak of civil war in 2011 was one of the defining stories of the last decade in Europe,