Bashar al-Assad

Bashar al-Assad (بشار الاسد) (born September 11, 1965) is the current President of Syria (The Syrian Arab Republic) and the son of former President Hafez al-Assad.

Government

He has promised economic and political reforms, but has delivered little change in the status quo. A repressive security apparatus remains solidly in place and criticism of the regime is frowned upon. Economic liberalisation has also been very limited, with industry still heavily state-controlled.

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The Ba'ath Party, which brought the elder Assad to power, remains the major controlling party in the Syrian Majlis. Assad, however, was not strongly involved previously in the running of the party.

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The military plays a key role in Syrian politics - Hafez al-Assad headed both the military and the air forces, and it was a military coup which brought him to power in 1970. Bashar entered the military academy at Homs, north of Damascus, following the death of Basil, and was propelled through the ranks to become a colonel in January 1999.

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Until he became President, Bashar's only political role was as the head of the Syrian Scientific Society, which was mainly in charge of introducing the Internet to Syria.

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Since he took office in 2000, Bashar has had to deal with a dire economic situation, not helped by mild sanctions, and occasional rebellions amongst the Kurds in north-eastern Syria.

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