Obscurity awaits Bashar al-Assad in Moscow after Putin offered personal escape route

Deposed Syrian president and his family are unlikely to live an extravagant lifestyle in Russia. Instead, they will probably be hidden away in a secluded estate, shielded from public view

He was whisked away without a last message to his people, the aircraft's transponder deliberately switched off to avoid detection as it departed from an airbase in Syria.

The operation was carried out with such secrecy that even the dictator's brother reportedly was not informed.