Reuters reports: Mystery surrounded the whereabouts of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Thursday, a day after a bomber killed and wounded his security chiefs and rebels closed in on the centre of Damascus, vowing to “liberate” the capital.
The Syrian leader made no public appearance and no statement after a bomber killed his powerful brother-in-law, his defense minister and a top general.
By the early hours of Thursday, residents had reported no let-up in the heaviest fighting to hit the capital in a 16-month revolt against Assad’s rule.
The fighting came within sight of the presidential palace, near the security headquarters where the bomber struck a crisis meeting of defense and security chiefs.
The principal impression is that we really know next to nothing about what’s happening. Assad commands a ruthless modern army, yet the rebellion goes on and on.
The most obvious implication of the bombing appears to be that, despite appearances, his support structure is not sufficiently closed and homogeneous to sustain the regime. It’s not just amateurs in the streets who are after him.
Lacking the requisite megalomania, he may be driven by a simple desire not to end up as a mutilated corpse on public view. On to the next!