Martina Navratilova hits out at Donald Trump, calls him "wannabe dictator" as Syrian civil war escalates, President Bashar al-Assad reportedly flees

Martina Navratilova has criticized Donald Trump, calling him a "wannabe dictator" and likening him to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who has reportedly fled the capital city of his country amid growing unrest. According to reports, Syrian rebel forces have seized control of Damascus which in turn prompted Assad to flee the country to an undisclosed location, according to the rebels.

Renowned Canadian-American author and journalist Robert Young Pelton tweeted:

“Damascus is falling."

“Assad is going down. And not a minute too soon," Martina Navratilova replied.

Mike Harvey, a Democratic party politician from Florida, echoed Navratilova's sentiments, writing:

“Civilization needs to rid itself of dictators. They don't care about their citizens, they care about controlling them."

Agreeing with Harvey's stance, Navratilova, who has been a long-time critic of the Republican party and President-elect Trump, tweeted:

“Yup. And we just elected one wannabe dictator here…"

Assad held the presidency in Syria from July 2000 until his overthrow in December 2024, serving as the commander-in-chief of the Syrian Armed Forces and the secretary-general of the Central Command of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party.

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“We will have an Oligarchy" - Martina Navratilova criticizes Donald Trump's cabinet selection

Martina Navratilova speaking to the press [Source: Getty]

Donald Trump will take office as the 47th President of the United States in January 2025. He previously served as the 45th President from 2017 to 2021 and secured a second term by defeating Kamala Harris in the 2024 US presidential elections.

It was reported that the 78-year-old appointed former PayPal executive David Sacks as the White House advisor for artificial Intelligence and cryptocurrency issues. This appointment was criticized by Martina Navratilova, who tweeted:

“We will have an Oligarchy cabinet if ever I saw one."

Navratilova has also previously voiced her disapproval of Donald Trump's alleged appointments of Cerberus Capital Management co-founder and CEO Stephen Feinberg as deputy defense secretary, and Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead the Department of Government Efficiency.