Secretary of State says U.S. officials have been in direct contact with the Syrian rebel group that overthrew President Assad but is designated a terrorist organization.

Syria's brutal civil war rekindled suddenly after 13 years, with rebels staging a shock offensive that forced long-time dictator Bashar al-Assad to flee to Russia.

Now covered in ashes and empty bullet casings, the grand mausoleum of ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's family stood in the eyes of rebels as a symbol of the injustice Syrians endured under their long rule.