A portrait of ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is displayed on the side of a burning government building in Damascus this morning.

Syria’s White Helmets group is offering a $3,000 reward for “anyone who provides information that helps locate secret prisons and detention centers where detainees are held.”

The volunteer relief group formally known as Syrian Civil Defense made a direct appeal to “former security officers and those working in the security branches to help reach these secret prisons,” in a post on X today.

The group emphasized the critical importance of this contribution and assured anyone who provided information would be “guaranteed” confidentiality.

The organization expressed its “full solidarity with the families and relatives of the victims” and urged families waiting for updates to “be patient and not to dig in the prisons or tamper with them” as doing so could harm the search.

The general command of the Syrian rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, also known as HTS, has issued new directives which ban any intervention in women’s clothing.

“Imposing any requests related to their attire or appearance, including requests for modesty, is strictly prohibited,” reported the Syrian state newspaper, which is now controlled by HTS.

“We affirm that personal freedom is guaranteed for all, and that respecting individual rights is the foundation for building a civilized nation,” the newspaper quoted the general command.

The command issued another directive saying it was forbidden to approach any military areas and police stations “to ensure security and stability.”

The sound of gunfire drowned out the noise of the traffic in Umayyad Square in central Damascus, after 50 years of Assad family rule came to an end.

The presence of Israeli forces in Syrian territory is temporary and out of precaution, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar told reporters today as the Israeli military moved to seize the entirety of the buffer zone in the occupied Golan Heights.

“I emphasize it is a very limited and temporary step, we took from security reasons,” he said.

His comments came as Israel launched strikes on parts of Golan Heights it has annexed, with Saar saying the military was attacking weapon sites, including those with suspected chemical weapons.

Syrians are proud of this new dawn, and still in disbelief that Assad is really gone.

As NBC News entered Syria this morning from neighboring Lebanon, pictures of the Assad family were defaced at the border crossing. On the drive to the capital, we passed boys on an abandoned government tank cheering, "Huriya," Arabic for “freedom.”

Syria now has a new hope, new possibilities and significant challenges as the map of the Middle East is being redrawn by the hour.

Syrian Prime Minister Mohammed Ghazi Jalali said most of the Cabinet members present in Damascus are working for a smooth transition of power.

“We are working so that the transitional period is quick and smooth,” he told Sky News Arabia TV station today, The Associated Press reported.

Jalali said he is ready to meet with the leader of the insurgents and head of the group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, Ahmad al-Sharaa.

Volker Turk, United Nations high commissioner for human rights, said today that the political transition in Syria must “ensure accountability for perpetrators of serious violations.”

He told a news conference that it was “essential that the human rights of all Syrians are at the core of such a process.”

He also highlighted the need for “meaningful and inclusive participation,” particularly from women and young people, in the transition of power post-Assad.

After “decades of brutal repression and nearly 14 years of relentless conflict,” there is now an opportunity for Syria to build a future “grounded in human rights, freedom, and justice,” he said.

A young girl waits to cross into Syria from Turkey at the Oncupinar border gate, near the town of Kilis, in southern Turkey this morning. Civilians haul luggage toward the Cilvegozu border gate, near the town of Antakya in Turkey this morning, as they cross into Syria.