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                     Syrian State TV Shows Assad at Mosque

   Syrian state television has shown President Bashar al-Assad attending
   prayers at a mosque in a district of northern Damascus to mark the
   Prophet Muhammad`s birthday.
   It was the first time since early January that state media have shown
   the president in a public setting.
   The broadcast showed Mr. Assad kneeling in the Al-Afram mosque flanked
   by Syria`s Grand Mufti Ahmad Hassoun. The state TV said the broadcast
   was live.
   Earlier, Syria`s minister of religious endowments, Mohammed Abdel
   Settar, called for "million-man prayers" at mosques on Friday to appeal
   for the re-establishment of security in the country.
   "Prayers will be held after Friday services in Syria`s mosques with the
   appeal for a return to security and safety in the homeland," Settar
   said, quoted by state news agency SANA.
   Mr. Assad`s broadcast appearance came as government fighters and rebels
   continued to battle for control of town and villages ringing the
   capital. There were reports of Syrian warplanes bombing rebel-held
   areas.
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   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/syrian-state-tv-shows-assad-at-mosque
   /1590044.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/syrian-state-tv-shows-assad-at-mosque/1590044.html