Syria Update: Assad sworn in for new seven-year term! Bashar al-Assad was sworn in on today as Syria’s president for a new seven-year term, in a red carpet ceremony in Damascus, after an election his opponents had slammed as a “farce.” Assad swore by the Koran before the country’s parliamentarians in an extraordinary session, 40 months into a conflict estimated to have killed more than 170,000 people. More than 1,000 people were invited to the inauguration ceremony, with Assad arriving at the presidential palace in a black sedan car before being met on a red carpet by a military band, AFP reported. Parliamentarians and other guests cheered for Assad in the hall where Assad was sworn in and then gave a speech. Looking calm and confident, he repeatedly took aim at the West and Sunni Muslim Gulf Arab monarchies who have funded and armed the rebels that have taken control of much of the north and east of the country but failed to topple him in Damascus. Western countries had dismissed last month’s election as a sham, but Assad’s victory affirmed him in power and shut down any talk of a negotiated settlement that would see him step aside. undoubtedly, Assad’s inauguration featured the display of carefully orchestrated adulation that has been typical of his infrequent public appearances since the start of the war. Thats the way it is. Folks...
Posted on: Wed, 16 Jul 2014 16:41:56 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015