As Syrian opposition forces, led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), establish a transitional government, the implications of the fall of Bashar al-Assad extend far beyond Syria. There, Russian president Vladimir Putin has made a series of strategic miscalculations that will undermine Russia’s influence,

The Kremlin on Wednesday played down the damage to Russian influence in the Middle East from the fall of Syrian ally Bashar al-Assad, saying that its focus was on Ukraine and that Moscow was in contact with Syria's new rulers.

It took just over a week for the 54-year Assad regime to fall in Syria and the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham rebel group to take control. WSJ breaks down how it happened—and what comes next for Syria and the Middle East.

The fall of the Assad government in Syria took almost everybody by surprise and has created uncertainty for competing foreign interests that had established lines of control most assumed were frozen in the region.