Difference between revisions of "Bashar al Assad"

From Wikispooks
Jump to navigation Jump to search
(Trump Apologised to Russia for Syria Attack)
Line 1: Line 1:
 
{{person
 
{{person
 
|name=Bashar al-Assad
 
|name=Bashar al-Assad
−
|image=Bashar_al-Assad.jpg
+
|image=Asma_Queen.jpg
−
|image_width=240px  
+
|image_width=240px
 +
|image_caption=Meeting the [[Elizabeth Windsor|Queen]] at Buckingham Palace in December 2002
 
|wikipedia=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bashar_al-Assad
 
|wikipedia=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bashar_al-Assad
 
|spouses=Asma al-Assad
 
|spouses=Asma al-Assad
Line 16: Line 17:
 
|title=President of Syria
 
|title=President of Syria
 
|start=17 July 2000
 
|start=17 July 2000
−
|end=
 
−
}}{{job
 
−
|title=Regional Secretary of the Regional Command of the Syrian Regional Branch
 
−
|start=24 June 2000
 
 
|end=
 
|end=
 
}}
 
}}
 
}}
 
}}
−
'''Bashar al-Assad''' (born 11 September 1965) is the 19th and current [[President of Syria]], holding the office since 17 July 2000. He is also commander-in-chief of the Syrian Armed Forces, General Secretary of the ruling Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party and Regional Secretary of the party's branch in [[Syria]]. He is a son of [[Hafez al-Assad]], who was President of Syria from 1971 to 2000.
+
'''Bashar al-Assad''' (born 11 September 1965) is the 19th and current [[President of Syria]], elected first on 17 July 2000 and re-elected in 2007 and 2014. Having married his British wife [[Asma al-Assad|Asma]] in December 2000, and following a visit to [[Syria]] by [[Tony Blair]] in November 2001,<ref>''[http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1361401/Rifkind-attacks-Blairs-unwise-mission-to-the-Middle-East.html "Rifkind attacks Blair's 'unwise' mission to the Middle East"]''</ref> Bashar and [[Asma al-Assad]] were invited to pay an official visit to the [[United Kingdom]] in December 2002.<ref>''[http://www.globalresearch.ca/flashback-to-2001-syrian-president-bashar-al-assad-to-british-prime-minister-tony-blair-stop-bombing-afghan-civilians/5485940 "Flashback to 2001: Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad to British Prime Minister Tony Blair: ‘Stop Bombing Afghan Civilians’"]''</ref>
 +
 
 +
By March 2016, five years after the [[Arab Spring]] violence first erupted in Syria, some 250,000 Syrians had lost their lives and more than 11 million others forced from their homes as the [https://www.facebook.com/syrianmilitary/ Syrian Arab Army], supported by [[Iran]]'s [[Hezbollah]] militia and [[Vladimir Putin]]'s [[Russia]], were battling with those opposed to Bashar al-Assad, including the [[NATO]]-backed [[Free Syrian Army]], [[Al-Nusra Front|Al Nusra jihadis]], [[Al Qaeda]]'s [[White Helmets]], the [[US]]-backed Kurdish YPG forces and [[Israel]]i-backed [[ISIS]] militants.<ref>''[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-26116868 "Syria: The story of the conflict"]''</ref>
 +
 
 +
On 7 April 2017, President [[Donald Trump]] launched 59 cruise missiles against a Syrian airforce base in response to the alleged sarin gas bombing of [[Khan Sheikhun]] in Idlib province on 4 April 2017, which the [[Syrian Observatory for Human Rights]] reported had resulted in the death of more than 80 people. Syria's air defences and electronic counter measures were reported to have destroyed 34 of the cruise missiles.<ref>''[http://www.veteranstoday.com/2017/04/09/trump-humilated-syria-shoots-down-34-of-59-cruise-missiles-russia-to-upgrade-system-soon/ "Trump Humilated: Syria Shoots Down 34 of 59 Cruise Missiles, Russia to Upgrade System Soon"]''</ref> Without providing supporting evidence, Trump said:
 +
:"On Tuesday, Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad launched a horrible chemical weapons attack on innocent civilians. Using a deadly nerve agent, Assad choked out the lives of helpless men, women and children. It was a slow and brutal death for so many. Even beautiful babies were cruelly murdered in this very barbaric attack."<ref>''[http://www.cnbc.com/2017/04/06/us-military-has-launched-more-50-than-missiles-aimed-at-syria-nbc-news.html "Trump launches attack on Syria with 59 Tomahawk missiles"]''</ref>
 +
 
 +
Commentators were quick to refute the Trump Administration narrative,<ref>''[https://libertyblitzkrieg.com/2017/04/18/the-trump-administrations-syria-gas-attack-narrative-continues-to-unravel/ "The Trump Administration’s Syria Gas Attack Narrative Continues to Unravel"]''</ref> and US Secretary of State [[Rex Tillerson]] went to Moscow on 12 April 2017 to apologise for the cruise missile attack.<ref>''[http://www.veteranstoday.com/2017/04/28/exclusive-trump-apologized-to-russia-for-syria-attack/ "Trump Apologised to Russia for Syria Attack"]''</ref>
 +
 
 +
On 27 April 2017, Britain's Foreign Secretary [[Boris Johnson]] said he and Prime Minister [[Theresa May]] agreed that in the event of "another chemical attack by the Assad regime", it would be hard for the UK to refuse any request from the US to join airstrikes:
 +
:"If the United States has a proposal to have some sort of action in response to a chemical weapons attack, and if they come to us and ask for our support, whether it is with submarine cruise missiles in the Med or whatever it happens to be, in my view, and I know this is also the view of Prime Minister, it would be very difficult for us to say no,” told the [[BBC]]. Asked if any UK strikes against Syria would need approval from the [[House of Commons]] (to be dissolved on 3 May for the [[UK/2017 General Election]]), Johnson said: “I think that needs to be tested."<ref>''[https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/apr/27/uk-strikes-syria-without-mps-approval-boris-johnson "MPs attack Boris Johnson remarks about strikes against Assad"]''</ref>
  
 
==Medical background==
 
==Medical background==
−
Born and raised in [[Damascus]], Assad graduated from the medical school of [[Damascus University]] in 1988, and started to work as a doctor in the Syrian Army. Four years later, he attended postgraduate studies at the Western Eye Hospital in London, specialising in ophthalmology. In 1994, after his elder brother Bassel al-Assad died in a car crash, Bashar was recalled to Syria to take over Bassel's role as heir apparent. He entered the military academy, taking charge of the Syrian occupation of [[Lebanon]] in 1998.
+
Born and raised in [[Damascus]], Assad graduated from the medical school of Damascus University in 1988, and started to work as a doctor in the Syrian Army. Four years later, he attended postgraduate studies at the Western Eye Hospital in London, specialising in ophthalmology. In 1994, after his elder brother Bassel al-Assad died in a car crash, Bashar was recalled to Syria to take over Bassel's role as heir apparent. He entered the military academy, taking charge of the Syrian occupation of [[Lebanon]] in 1998.
  
−
==President==
+
==Elected President==
 
On 10 July 2000, Assad was elected as President, succeeding his father, who died in office a month prior. In the 2000 and subsequent 2007 elections, he received 99.7% and 97.6% support, respectively, in referendums on his leadership.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/27/AR2007052701117.html |work=The Washington Post|title=Syrians Vote For Assad in Uncontested Referendum|agency= Associated Press |date=28 May 2007 |accessdate=13 March 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6700021.stm |publisher=BBC News|title=Syria's Assad wins another term|date=29 May 2007 |accessdate= 13 March 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url = https://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/may/28/syria.ianblack|title = Democracy Damascus style: Assad the only choice in referendum |work = The Guardian |date=28 May 2007}}</ref>
 
On 10 July 2000, Assad was elected as President, succeeding his father, who died in office a month prior. In the 2000 and subsequent 2007 elections, he received 99.7% and 97.6% support, respectively, in referendums on his leadership.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/27/AR2007052701117.html |work=The Washington Post|title=Syrians Vote For Assad in Uncontested Referendum|agency= Associated Press |date=28 May 2007 |accessdate=13 March 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6700021.stm |publisher=BBC News|title=Syria's Assad wins another term|date=29 May 2007 |accessdate= 13 March 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url = https://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/may/28/syria.ianblack|title = Democracy Damascus style: Assad the only choice in referendum |work = The Guardian |date=28 May 2007}}</ref>
−
 
+
[[File:Bashar_al-Assad.jpg|400px|right|thumb|President Assad, targeted by [[NATO]] for regime change]]
 
On 16 July 2014, Assad was sworn in for another seven-year term after taking 88.7% of votes in the first contested presidential election in Ba'athist Syria's history.<ref>{{cite news|title= Confident Assad launches new term in stronger position |url=http://www.reuters.com/article/us-syria-crisis-assad-idUSKBN0FL0NN20140717|agency=Reuters|date=16 July 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/04/28/us-syria-crisis-assad-idUSBREA3R0LH20140428?irpc=932 |title=Assad seeks re-election as Syrian civil war rages |agency=Reuters |first1=Dominic |last1=Evans |date= 28 April 2014|accessdate=13 March 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-27419552 |title=UK's William Hague attacks Assad's Syria elections plan |publisher=BBC News|date=15 May 2014 |accessdate=13 March 2015}}</ref> The election was criticised by media outlets as "tightly controlled" and without independent [[Election monitoring|election monitors]], while an international delegation led by allies of Assad issued a statement asserting that the election was "free, fair and transparent".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/ap/article-2648552/Syrias-Assad-wins-presidential-vote-landslide.html|title=Syria's Assad wins presidential vote in landslide|website=Daily Mail |date=4 June 2014 |accessdate=17 December 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Foreign-delegation-in-Syria-slams-West-endorses-elections/articleshow/36069541.cms |title=Foreign delegation in Syria slams West, endorses elections |work=The Times of India |date=4 June 2014|accessdate=8 June 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/10970476/Bashar-al-Assad-sworn-in-for-a-third-term-as-Syrian-president.html|title=Bashar al-Assad sworn in for a third term as Syrian president|website=The Daily Telegraph|date=16 July 2014|accessdate=17 December 2016}}</ref> The Assad government describes itself as secular,{{sfn|Bronner|2007|p=63}} while some experts claim that the government exploits sectarian tensions in the country and relies upon the Alawite minority to remain in power.<ref>{{cite news|url= http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/Middle%20East%20North%20Africa/Iraq%20Syria%20Lebanon/Syria/151-flight-of-icarus-the-pyd-s-precarious-rise-in-syria.pdf |title= Flight of Icarus? The PYD's Precarious Rise in Syria |publisher=International Crisis Group|date=8 May 2014|accessdate=4 October 2014 |format=PDF|page= 23 |quote=The regime aims to compel people to take refuge in their sectarian and communitarian identities; to split each community into competing branches, dividing those who support it from those who oppose it}}</ref><ref name="NPR_APRIL_2015">{{cite web |url= http://www.npr.org/blogs/parallels/2015/04/18/400360836/syrias-minorities-caught-between-sword-of-isis-and-wrath-of-assad |title= Syria's Minorities: Caught Between Sword Of ISIS And Wrath of Assad |publisher= NPR |last= Meuse |first= Alison |date= 18 April 2015 |accessdate= 19 April 2015 |quote= Karim Bitar, a Middle East analyst at Paris think tank IRIS [...] says [...] "Minorities are often used as a shield by authoritarian regimes, who try to portray themselves as protectors and as a bulwark against radical Islam."}}</ref>
 
On 16 July 2014, Assad was sworn in for another seven-year term after taking 88.7% of votes in the first contested presidential election in Ba'athist Syria's history.<ref>{{cite news|title= Confident Assad launches new term in stronger position |url=http://www.reuters.com/article/us-syria-crisis-assad-idUSKBN0FL0NN20140717|agency=Reuters|date=16 July 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/04/28/us-syria-crisis-assad-idUSBREA3R0LH20140428?irpc=932 |title=Assad seeks re-election as Syrian civil war rages |agency=Reuters |first1=Dominic |last1=Evans |date= 28 April 2014|accessdate=13 March 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-27419552 |title=UK's William Hague attacks Assad's Syria elections plan |publisher=BBC News|date=15 May 2014 |accessdate=13 March 2015}}</ref> The election was criticised by media outlets as "tightly controlled" and without independent [[Election monitoring|election monitors]], while an international delegation led by allies of Assad issued a statement asserting that the election was "free, fair and transparent".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/ap/article-2648552/Syrias-Assad-wins-presidential-vote-landslide.html|title=Syria's Assad wins presidential vote in landslide|website=Daily Mail |date=4 June 2014 |accessdate=17 December 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Foreign-delegation-in-Syria-slams-West-endorses-elections/articleshow/36069541.cms |title=Foreign delegation in Syria slams West, endorses elections |work=The Times of India |date=4 June 2014|accessdate=8 June 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/10970476/Bashar-al-Assad-sworn-in-for-a-third-term-as-Syrian-president.html|title=Bashar al-Assad sworn in for a third term as Syrian president|website=The Daily Telegraph|date=16 July 2014|accessdate=17 December 2016}}</ref> The Assad government describes itself as secular,{{sfn|Bronner|2007|p=63}} while some experts claim that the government exploits sectarian tensions in the country and relies upon the Alawite minority to remain in power.<ref>{{cite news|url= http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/Middle%20East%20North%20Africa/Iraq%20Syria%20Lebanon/Syria/151-flight-of-icarus-the-pyd-s-precarious-rise-in-syria.pdf |title= Flight of Icarus? The PYD's Precarious Rise in Syria |publisher=International Crisis Group|date=8 May 2014|accessdate=4 October 2014 |format=PDF|page= 23 |quote=The regime aims to compel people to take refuge in their sectarian and communitarian identities; to split each community into competing branches, dividing those who support it from those who oppose it}}</ref><ref name="NPR_APRIL_2015">{{cite web |url= http://www.npr.org/blogs/parallels/2015/04/18/400360836/syrias-minorities-caught-between-sword-of-isis-and-wrath-of-assad |title= Syria's Minorities: Caught Between Sword Of ISIS And Wrath of Assad |publisher= NPR |last= Meuse |first= Alison |date= 18 April 2015 |accessdate= 19 April 2015 |quote= Karim Bitar, a Middle East analyst at Paris think tank IRIS [...] says [...] "Minorities are often used as a shield by authoritarian regimes, who try to portray themselves as protectors and as a bulwark against radical Islam."}}</ref>
  
 
==Insurgency==
 
==Insurgency==
−
Once seen by the international community as a potential reformer, the [[United States]], the [[European Union]], and the majority of the [[Arab League]] called for Assad's resignation from the presidency after he allegedly ordered crackdowns and military sieges on [[Arab Spring]] protesters, which led to the [[Syrian Civil War]].<ref>{{cite news|url= http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-2990998/Syrias-Assad-tightens-grip-four-years-war.html |title= Syria's Assad tightens grip after four years of war |work= Daily Mail |agency=Agence France-Presse|date=12 April 2015 |accessdate= 12 March 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=Bassem Mroue |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/18/bashar-assad-resignation-syria-protest_n_850657.html|title=Bashar Assad Resignation Called For By Syria Sit-In Activists|work=[[The Huffington Post]] |agency= Associated Press |accessdate=14 March 2015|date=18 April 2011|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20110512045222/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/18/bashar-assad-resignation-syria-protest_n_850657.html|archivedate=12 May 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/22/world/meast/syria-unrest |title=Arab League to offer 'safe exit' if Assad resigns |publisher=CNN |date= 23 July 2012|accessdate= 13 March 2015}}</ref> During the Syrian Civil War, an inquiry by the [[United Nations]] reported finding evidence which implicated Assad in [[war crimes]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-25189834 |title=UN implicates Bashar al-Assad in Syria war crimes |publisher=BBC News |date=2 December 2013 |accessdate=13 March 2015}}</ref> In June 2014, Assad was included in a list of war crimes indictments of government officials and rebels handed to the [[International Criminal Court]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN0EL25020140610?irpc=932 |title=Assad tops list of Syria war crimes suspects handed to ICC: former prosecutor |first1= Stephanie |last1= Nebehay |agency=Reuters |date=10 June 2014 |accessdate=13 March 2015}}</ref> Assad has rejected allegations of war crimes, and criticised the [[American-led intervention in Syria]] for attempting [[regime change]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.politico.eu/article/bashar-al-assad-denies-responsibility-for-syrian-war-violence-refugees/|title=Assad denies responsibility for Syrian war|first=Esther|last=King|publisher=Politico|date=2 November 2016|accessdate=21 December 2016|quote=The Syrian president maintained he was fighting to preserve his country and criticised the West for intervening. “Good government or bad, it’s not your mission” to change it, he said.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.itv.com/news/2016-10-06/striking-hospitals-is-a-war-crime-syrias-assad-says/|title='Bombing hospitals is a war crime,' Syria's Assad says|author=Staff writer(s)|publisher=ITV News|date=6 October 2016|accessdate=21 December 2016|quote=The intense bombardment of Aleppo during an army offensive that began two weeks ago has included several strikes on hospitals, residents and medical workers there have said. But Assad denied any knowledge of such attacks, saying that there were only "allegations".}}</ref> After the election of [[Donald Trump]], the priority of the United States concerning Assad was initially not to force him out of power, but this policy quickly reversed in the wake of the [[2017 Khan Shaykhun chemical attack]].<ref>{{cite news|title=U.S. priority on Syria no longer focused on 'getting Assad out': Haley |url=http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-usa-haley-idUSKBN1712QL|agency=Reuters|date=30 March 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.axios.com/tillerson-u-s-will-lead-coalition-to-oust-assad-2348075513.html|title=Tillerson: U.S. will lead coalition to oust Assad|first=Alayna|last=Treene|date=6 April 2017|publisher=}}</ref>
+
Once seen by the international community as a potential reformer, the [[United States]], the [[European Union]], and the majority of the [[Arab League]] called for Assad's resignation from the presidency after he allegedly ordered crackdowns and military sieges on [[Arab Spring]] protesters, which led to the Syrian insurgency.<ref>{{cite news|url= http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-2990998/Syrias-Assad-tightens-grip-four-years-war.html |title= Syria's Assad tightens grip after four years of war |work= Daily Mail |agency=Agence France-Presse|date=12 April 2015 |accessdate= 12 March 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=Bassem Mroue |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/18/bashar-assad-resignation-syria-protest_n_850657.html|title=Bashar Assad Resignation Called For By Syria Sit-In Activists|work=[[The Huffington Post]] |agency= Associated Press |accessdate=14 March 2015|date=18 April 2011|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20110512045222/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/18/bashar-assad-resignation-syria-protest_n_850657.html|archivedate=12 May 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/22/world/meast/syria-unrest |title=Arab League to offer 'safe exit' if Assad resigns |publisher=CNN |date= 23 July 2012|accessdate= 13 March 2015}}</ref> During the insurgency, an inquiry by the [[United Nations]] reported finding evidence which implicated Assad in war crimes.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-25189834 |title=UN implicates Bashar al-Assad in Syria war crimes |publisher=BBC News |date=2 December 2013 |accessdate=13 March 2015}}</ref> In June 2014, Assad was included in a list of war crimes indictments of government officials and rebels handed to the [[International Criminal Court]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN0EL25020140610?irpc=932 |title=Assad tops list of Syria war crimes suspects handed to ICC: former prosecutor |first1= Stephanie |last1= Nebehay |agency=Reuters |date=10 June 2014 |accessdate=13 March 2015}}</ref> Assad has rejected allegations of war crimes, and criticised the American-led intervention in Syria for attempting regime change.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.politico.eu/article/bashar-al-assad-denies-responsibility-for-syrian-war-violence-refugees/|title=Assad denies responsibility for Syrian war|first=Esther|last=King|publisher=Politico|date=2 November 2016|accessdate=21 December 2016|quote=The Syrian president maintained he was fighting to preserve his country and criticised the West for intervening. “Good government or bad, it’s not your mission” to change it, he said.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.itv.com/news/2016-10-06/striking-hospitals-is-a-war-crime-syrias-assad-says/|title='Bombing hospitals is a war crime,' Syria's Assad says|author=Staff writer(s)|publisher=ITV News|date=6 October 2016|accessdate=21 December 2016|quote=The intense bombardment of Aleppo during an army offensive that began two weeks ago has included several strikes on hospitals, residents and medical workers there have said. But Assad denied any knowledge of such attacks, saying that there were only "allegations".}}</ref> After the election of [[Donald Trump]], the priority of the United States concerning Assad was initially not to force him out of power, but this policy quickly reversed in the wake of the 2017 [[Khan Sheikhun]] chemical attack.<ref>{{cite news|title=U.S. priority on Syria no longer focused on 'getting Assad out': Haley |url=http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-usa-haley-idUSKBN1712QL|agency=Reuters|date=30 March 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.axios.com/tillerson-u-s-will-lead-coalition-to-oust-assad-2348075513.html|title=Tillerson: U.S. will lead coalition to oust Assad|first=Alayna|last=Treene|date=6 April 2017|publisher=}}</ref>
 
{{SMWDocs}}
 
{{SMWDocs}}
 
==References==
 
==References==
 
{{reflist}}
 
{{reflist}}
 
{{Stub}}
 
{{Stub}}

Revision as of 15:00, 29 April 2017

Person.png Bashar al-Assad   WebsiteRdf-entity.pngRdf-icon.png
Asma Queen.jpg
Meeting the Queen at Buckingham Palace in December 2002
BornBashar Hafez al-Assad
1965-09-11
Damascus, Syria
Alma materDamascus University
ReligionIslam
Children • Hafez Zein
• Karim
SpouseAsma al-Assad
PartySyrian Ba'ath Party

Employment.png President of Syria Wikipedia-icon.png

In office
17 July 2000 - Present

Bashar al-Assad (born 11 September 1965) is the 19th and current President of Syria, elected first on 17 July 2000 and re-elected in 2007 and 2014. Having married his British wife Asma in December 2000, and following a visit to Syria by Tony Blair in November 2001,[1] Bashar and Asma al-Assad were invited to pay an official visit to the United Kingdom in December 2002.[2]

By March 2016, five years after the Arab Spring violence first erupted in Syria, some 250,000 Syrians had lost their lives and more than 11 million others forced from their homes as the Syrian Arab Army, supported by Iran's Hezbollah militia and Vladimir Putin's Russia, were battling with those opposed to Bashar al-Assad, including the NATO-backed Free Syrian Army, Al Nusra jihadis, Al Qaeda's White Helmets, the US-backed Kurdish YPG forces and Israeli-backed ISIS militants.[3]

On 7 April 2017, President Donald Trump launched 59 cruise missiles against a Syrian airforce base in response to the alleged sarin gas bombing of Khan Sheikhun in Idlib province on 4 April 2017, which the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported had resulted in the death of more than 80 people. Syria's air defences and electronic counter measures were reported to have destroyed 34 of the cruise missiles.[4] Without providing supporting evidence, Trump said:

"On Tuesday, Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad launched a horrible chemical weapons attack on innocent civilians. Using a deadly nerve agent, Assad choked out the lives of helpless men, women and children. It was a slow and brutal death for so many. Even beautiful babies were cruelly murdered in this very barbaric attack."[5]

Commentators were quick to refute the Trump Administration narrative,[6] and US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson went to Moscow on 12 April 2017 to apologise for the cruise missile attack.[7]

On 27 April 2017, Britain's Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said he and Prime Minister Theresa May agreed that in the event of "another chemical attack by the Assad regime", it would be hard for the UK to refuse any request from the US to join airstrikes:

"If the United States has a proposal to have some sort of action in response to a chemical weapons attack, and if they come to us and ask for our support, whether it is with submarine cruise missiles in the Med or whatever it happens to be, in my view, and I know this is also the view of Prime Minister, it would be very difficult for us to say no,” told the BBC. Asked if any UK strikes against Syria would need approval from the House of Commons (to be dissolved on 3 May for the UK/2017 General Election), Johnson said: “I think that needs to be tested."[8]

Medical background

Born and raised in Damascus, Assad graduated from the medical school of Damascus University in 1988, and started to work as a doctor in the Syrian Army. Four years later, he attended postgraduate studies at the Western Eye Hospital in London, specialising in ophthalmology. In 1994, after his elder brother Bassel al-Assad died in a car crash, Bashar was recalled to Syria to take over Bassel's role as heir apparent. He entered the military academy, taking charge of the Syrian occupation of Lebanon in 1998.

Elected President

On 10 July 2000, Assad was elected as President, succeeding his father, who died in office a month prior. In the 2000 and subsequent 2007 elections, he received 99.7% and 97.6% support, respectively, in referendums on his leadership.[9][10][11]

President Assad, targeted by NATO for regime change

On 16 July 2014, Assad was sworn in for another seven-year term after taking 88.7% of votes in the first contested presidential election in Ba'athist Syria's history.[12][13][14] The election was criticised by media outlets as "tightly controlled" and without independent election monitors, while an international delegation led by allies of Assad issued a statement asserting that the election was "free, fair and transparent".[15][16][17] The Assad government describes itself as secular,[18] while some experts claim that the government exploits sectarian tensions in the country and relies upon the Alawite minority to remain in power.[19][20]

Insurgency

Once seen by the international community as a potential reformer, the United States, the European Union, and the majority of the Arab League called for Assad's resignation from the presidency after he allegedly ordered crackdowns and military sieges on Arab Spring protesters, which led to the Syrian insurgency.[21][22][23] During the insurgency, an inquiry by the United Nations reported finding evidence which implicated Assad in war crimes.[24] In June 2014, Assad was included in a list of war crimes indictments of government officials and rebels handed to the International Criminal Court.[25] Assad has rejected allegations of war crimes, and criticised the American-led intervention in Syria for attempting regime change.[26][27] After the election of Donald Trump, the priority of the United States concerning Assad was initially not to force him out of power, but this policy quickly reversed in the wake of the 2017 Khan Sheikhun chemical attack.[28][29]

 

A Document by Bashar al Assad

TitleDocument typePublication dateSubject(s)Description
Document:Speech by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on 20 August 2017 to the Syrian Diplomatic CorpsSpeech31 August 2017Israel
Iran
Russia
Turkey
Vladimir Putin
China
Syria
Donald Trump
Hezbollah
Hassan Nasrallah
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan		The US President is not the maker of policies, but the executor. Therefore, the “Deep State” in the United States does not govern in partnership with the President, but leaves him a small margin.

 

Related Documents

TitleTypePublication dateAuthor(s)Description
Document:Absolute folly for Britain to get involved in SyriaArticle1 March 2018Leo McKinstryTory MP Johnny Mercer, a former soldier, has demanded: “Britain must come to Syria’s aid” and condemned those who oppose “military intervention”.
Document:Destroying SyriaArticle23 January 2018Philip GiraldiFormer CIA officer Philip Giraldi says the United States has zero evidence on the Syrian conflict. Someone should remind the President that similar scenarios did not turn out very well in Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya.
Document:Ed Miliband’s decision to oppose military action against Syria is an action of statesmanship of which Britons will be proudArticle28 August 2013Michael MeacherIt is all very well to rush to war in a surge of moral outrage, it is quite another to spell out clearly what are the war objectives and how exactly they are to be achieved.
Document:Monbiot is not only a hypocrite, but a bully tooArticle12 January 2018Jonathan CookIt is time for George Monbiot’s legion of supporters to call him out. Not only is he a hypocrite, but he is becoming an increasingly dangerous one!
Document:Pictures resurface showing US Secretary John Kerry and President Assad dining in Syria togetherArticle3 September 2013Heather SaulJohn Kerry's volte-face: Syria is an essential player in bringing peace and stability to the region (2009). President Assad is a "thug" like Adolf Hitler (2013).
Document:President Bashar al Assad - Interview 17 June 2013interview17 June 2013Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung editorial staffAn interview with Syrian President Basher al-Assad
Document:President Bashar al Assad - Interview 3 March 2013interview3 March 2013Sunday Times editorial staff
Document:The Trump Administration’s Syria Gas Attack Narrative Continues to UnravelArticle18 April 2017Michael KriegerUnited States Government: "They Lied About Iraq; They Lied About Libya; They're Lying About Syria."
Document:Trump said to deprecate Netanyahu's intention to bump off AssadArticle1 September 2017Eric ZuesseBetter wait until my fundamentalist VP is in place, Benny boy!
Document:Why Tony is right to entertain AssadArticle17 December 2002Rod LiddleBashar al Assad became the first Syrian leader to visit the United Kingdom in 2002.
Many thanks to our Patrons who cover ~2/3 of our hosting bill. Please join them if you can.


References

  1. ↑ "Rifkind attacks Blair's 'unwise' mission to the Middle East"
  2. ↑ "Flashback to 2001: Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad to British Prime Minister Tony Blair: ‘Stop Bombing Afghan Civilians’"
  3. ↑ "Syria: The story of the conflict"
  4. ↑ "Trump Humilated: Syria Shoots Down 34 of 59 Cruise Missiles, Russia to Upgrade System Soon"
  5. ↑ "Trump launches attack on Syria with 59 Tomahawk missiles"
  6. ↑ "The Trump Administration’s Syria Gas Attack Narrative Continues to Unravel"
  7. ↑ "Trump Apologised to Russia for Syria Attack"
  8. ↑ "MPs attack Boris Johnson remarks about strikes against Assad"
  9. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  10. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  11. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  12. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  13. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  14. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  15. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  16. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  17. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  18. ↑ Bronner 2007, p. 63.
  19. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  20. ↑ Meuse, Alison (18 April 2015). "Syria's Minorities: Caught Between Sword Of ISIS And Wrath of Assad". NPR. Retrieved 19 April 2015. Karim Bitar, a Middle East analyst at Paris think tank IRIS [...] says [...] "Minorities are often used as a shield by authoritarian regimes, who try to portray themselves as protectors and as a bulwark against radical Islam."Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  21. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  22. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  23. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  24. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  25. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  26. ↑ King, Esther (2 November 2016). "Assad denies responsibility for Syrian war". Politico. Retrieved 21 December 2016. The Syrian president maintained he was fighting to preserve his country and criticised the West for intervening. “Good government or bad, it’s not your mission” to change it, he said.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  27. ↑ Staff writer(s) (6 October 2016). "'Bombing hospitals is a war crime,' Syria's Assad says". ITV News. Retrieved 21 December 2016. The intense bombardment of Aleppo during an army offensive that began two weeks ago has included several strikes on hospitals, residents and medical workers there have said. But Assad denied any knowledge of such attacks, saying that there were only "allegations".Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  28. ↑ {{URL|example.com|optional display text}}
  29. ↑ Treene, Alayna (6 April 2017). "Tillerson: U.S. will lead coalition to oust Assad".Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").


57px-Notepad icon.png This is a page stub. Please add to it.

Retrieved from "https://wikispooks.com/w/index.php?title=Bashar_al_Assad&oldid=112835"