Syria바카라 게임 웹사이트�s iron-fisted leader Bashar al-Assad is the second generation of an autocratic family dynasty that held power for more than five decades and his disappearance amid a lightning rebel advance signals an astonishing reordering of power in a strategically vital Middle Eastern nation.Assad is known for a brutal rule over Syria, which since 2011 has been devastated by a civil war that ravaged the country and turned it into a breeding ground for extremist group ISIS, while sparking an international proxy war and refugee crisis that saw millions displaced from their homes.War began after Assad바카라 게임 웹사이트�s regime refused to bow to mass pro-democracy protests that year during the Arab Spring, instead mounting a brutal crackdown on the peaceful movement 바카라 게임 웹사이트� killing and jailing thousands in the first few months alone.Assad바카라 게임 웹사이트�s forces have since been accused of severe human rights violations and brutal assaults against civilians throughout the 13-year war, including the use of chemical weapons against their own people. The United States, Jordan, Turkey and the European Union at the war바카라 게임 웹사이트�s start all called for Assad to step down.But the heavily Western-sanctioned and internationally isolated regime has clung to power until now thanks to the backing of powerful allies Russia and Iran, and a merciless campaign against opposition.Testament to the horror of that regime were scenes of jubilant celebration as rebel forces took control of Syrian cities. In Homs, videos geolocated by CNN showed residents tearing apart posters of Assad and his father in scenes that recalled symbolic images from 2011.Assad comes to powerAssad took power in an unopposed election in 2000 following the death of his father Hafez al-Assad, who rose from poverty to lead the Baath Party and seized power in 1970, becoming the country바카라 게임 웹사이트�s president the following year. The younger Assad grew up in the shadow of his father, a Soviet ally who ruled Syria for three decades and helped propel a minority Alawite population to key political, social and military posts.Like the son who succeeded him, Hafez al-Assad tolerated little dissent with oppression widespread and periodic bouts of extreme state violence. In 1982 in the city of Hama 바카라 게임 웹사이트� which rebels seized earlier this week 바카라 게임 웹사이트� Hafez al-Assad had his army and intelligence services slaughter thousands of his opponents, ending an uprising led by the Muslim Brotherhood.As a second son not poised to take up his father바카라 게임 웹사이트�s mantle, Assad studied ophthalmology in London until his older brother Bassel, who had been groomed to succeed Hafez, died in a car crash in 1994. Bashar al-Assad was then thrust into the national spotlight and studied military science, later becoming a colonel in the Syrian army.After his father바카라 게임 웹사이트�s death in June 2000, it took just hours for the Syrian parliament to change the constitution to lower the presidential age of eligibility from 40 to Assad바카라 게임 웹사이트�s age at the time of 34, a move that allowed him to succeed his father after opposition-less elections the following month.Many observers in Europe and the United States seemed heartened by the incoming president, who presented himself as a fresh, youthful leader who might usher in a more progressive, moderate regime.Assad바카라 게임 웹사이트�s wife, Asma al-Assad, whom he married in 2000, a former investment banker of Syrian descent who grew up in London, helped burnish that view.But Western hopes of a more moderate Syria sank when the new leader promptly maintained his country바카라 게임 웹사이트�s traditional ties with militant groups, such as Hamas and Hezbollah. They then turned to outright condemnation of the regime after he met the 2011 pro-democracy groundswell with brutal force.In May 2011, then U.S. President Barack Obama said Assad바카라 게임 웹사이트�s regime had 바카라 게임 웹사이트�chosen the path of murder and the mass arrests of its citizens바카라 게임 웹사이트� and called on him to lead a democratic transition 바카라 게임 웹사이트�or get out of the way.바카라 게임 웹사이트�Assad has been re-elected by sweeping majorities every seven years, most recently in 2021 in what the U.S., U.K., France, Germany and Italy deemed a 바카라 게임 웹사이트�fraudulent election.바카라 게임 웹사이트�Civil warAssad바카라 게임 웹사이트�s forces were known for brutal tactics during the civil war that ensued after the crackdown on 2011 pro-democracy protests, when an armed opposition made up of small organic militias and some defectors from the Syrian military formed.On 2013, UN weapons inspectors returned 바카라 게임 웹사이트�overwhelming and indisputable바카라 게임 웹사이트� evidence of the use of nerve gas in Syria. Then UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called the Aug. 21 attack described in the report, which took place in the Damascus suburbs, 바카라 게임 웹사이트�the worst use of weapons of mass destruction in the 21st century.바카라 게임 웹사이트�The United States said that attack may have killed more than 1,400, including hundreds of civilians. Syrian officials have repeatedly denied allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity.The attack and others galvanized world powers to work to dismantle the regime바카라 게임 웹사이트�s chemical arsenal and pushed the U.S. in 2013 to up its support for Syrian opposition forces, following what Washington said was the crossing of a 바카라 게임 웹사이트�red line.바카라 게임 웹사이트�Assad warned Western nations against supporting rebel groups battling his armed forces, predicting the militants would one day strike against the U.S. and others. Later, in 2015 the leader said Syria wouldn바카라 게임 웹사이트�t join a U.S.-led coalition focused on destroying terror group ISIS, which took control of parts of the war-torn country during the war.The conflict is now a cornerstone of Assad바카라 게임 웹사이트�s brutal legacy, leaving hundreds of thousands of dead, and what the United Nations earlier this year said was more than 7 million internally displaced and over 6 million international refugees.