Candid photos of Syria’s Assad expose a world beyond the carefully crafted and repressive rule

Associated Press

BEIRUT (AP) — Personal photos of ousted Syrian President Bashar Assad have surfaced from his abandoned residences, sparking ridicule among Syrians who until days ago were persecuted for criticizing his carefully crafted public image. The intimate and candid photos were reportedly discovered in albums from Assad’s mansions in the hills of Damascus and Aleppo. They offer a stark contrast to the polished, glamorous image that Assad and his father projected as they led Syria for half a century. Syrians have been fascinated by the background glimpses of a seemingly normal family that held the country in an iron grip and bombed their fellow citizens who disobeyed them.