DAMASCUS — Syria, a prized pillar of Iran’s so-called axis of resistance — connecting it to Hezbollah in Lebanon via its top ally, Iraq — collapsed overnight when Islamist rebels stormed Damascus in early December and overthrew the regime of Tehran’s longtime protege, Bashar al-Assad. Similarly to how Iranian students pillaged and trashed the US Embassy in Tehran 45 years ago, the rebels laid waste to the Iranian mission, carting off valuables, smashing safes and burning symbols of the Islamic Republic.

Two months on, Iranian flags and posters of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei lie scattered on the floors of the deserted building, along with assorted documents plainly not interesting enough for the rebels — and foreign spies — to collect. 

"Jin, Jiyan, Azadi" — or "Women, Life, Freedom" — the rallying cry of thousands of protesters after the 2022 death of Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini in police detention, is scrawled in bold red letters on its outside wall.

“Assad out, Khamenei loading,” reads graffiti on the walls of Iran’s now abandoned cultural center in downtown Damascus. When international flights resumed at Damascus international airport, the new leadership reportedly instructed airlines operating there to not let Iranian and Israeli nationals on board.