{Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad made a rare public appearance on Saturday, attending prayers on the Muslim Eid al-Adha holiday at a mosque in Damascus, state media said.}<\/p>\n
State media and Assad’s official Twitter feed posted photos of the embattled president praying alongside the country’s top cleric and members of his government.<\/p>\n
“President Bashar al-Assad leads Eid al-Adha prayers at the Nuaman bin Bashir mosque in Damascus,” state news agency SANA said.<\/p>\n
Adnan Afyouni, Damascus’s top cleric, used his sermon to criticise the international community for backing an uprising against Assad that began in 2011.<\/p>\n
“Eid is associated with happiness in the life of the Muslim nation,” he said.<\/p>\n
“But Eid has not entered our homes because the West and its Arab collaborators decided to make our country a battlefield… and implement interests and agendas,” he said.<\/p>\n
Syria’s government has long accused Western and Arab backers of the uprising against Assad of supporting “terrorism” and trying to destroy the country.<\/p>\n
“We pledge to God almighty to protect our country from a great conspiracy that targets its role and presence and resilience,” he said.<\/p>\n
“We pledge to keep the country from being turned into a war zone, torn apart and divided,” he said, referring to “plans drawn up at the White House and carried out today in north and east Syria.”<\/p>\n
The comments appeared to be a reference to strikes by a US-led coalition against the jihadist Islamic State group, which has strongholds in the north and east of the country.<\/p>\n
More than 180,000 people have been killed in Syria since the beginning of the uprising against Assad in March 2011.<\/p>\n
The country’s conflict began with anti-government demonstrations, but spiralled into a vicious civil war after the regime opened fire on protesters.<\/p>\n
AFP<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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