Author: Arab NewsWed, 2017-03-22ID: 1490181503430262800
DUBAI: Syrian President Bashar Al Assad’s wife was named “Mother of the Nation” in a flurry of pictures and video clips released on the occasion of Mother’s Day in the Middle East.
To mark the occasion, which is celebrated on March 21 in the Arab world, First Lady Asma Al Assad welcomed a group of mothers whose sons had died in the fighting in Aleppo.
The Instagram and Facebook accounts of the Syrian presidency posted images of the meeting, showing Asma Al Assad hugging and laughing with a group of women.
The images and video were titled “Mother of the Nation,” in reference to the first lady.
In a video posted to the Facebook page, she told the mothers: “You, Aleppo mothers, made Aleppo stronger. You have been the compass we all followed and went through toward victory. You decided you would win and you did through your sons, your homes, your endurance and your support to your army. You won and Aleppo won along with you.”
She further said: “Every mother that insisted on staying at her home despite the bombs of terrorism is a weapon in the hand of a solder, and every mother who sent her children to school despite the fear and danger is a bullet in the rifle of every soldier.
خلال استقبالها أمهات من #حلب في #عيد_الأم.. السيدة #أسماء_الأسد: “..رح يكتب التاريخ كيف يوم ورا يوم الضو عم يطلع من قوة أهل الشهداء، من وجع جرح الجريح، من صمود أم المفقود، ومن لهفة أم المخطوف يلي رجعلها ابنها بعد غياب طويل..” #SyrianPresidency #Syria #Asma #Assad #MothersDay #Martyrs #Hero #Mother #Brave #Aleppo #Challenge #PhotoOfTheDay #BestOfTheDay
A post shared by Syrian Presidency (@syrianpresidency) on Mar 21, 2017 at 2:27pm PDT
“Welcome back mothers to the mother of all — Syria.”
The battle for the city of Aleppo ended in December with the retreat of the opposition and was labelled one of the worst battles in a civil war that has been raging since 2011.
The plight of civilians in Aleppo caused global outrage as Syrian troops moved from neighborhood to neighborhood and civilians posted social media videos bidding farewell to their followers.
“We appear to be witnessing nothing less than … a total uncompromising military victory,” former UN Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon said at the time, according to Reuters.
Although more than 400,000 people have been killed since the beginning of the war in 2011, many are praising the recognition on social media.
One Instagram user commented: “A salute to the great women of Syria.”
Another said: “As long as we have the first lady, we are not afraid, because her speech touched the hearts of every martyr’s mother.”
Almost five million people have fled Syria since the beginning of the war and a further 6.3 million remain as internally displaced persons, according to UNHCR data.
Main category: Middle-EastTags: SyriaAsma Al AssadBashar Al AssadMother’s Dayrelated_nodes: 33 dead in US-led air strike on north Syria: monitorAustralia close to resettling 12,000 Syrian refugeesSyrian opposition fighters launch offensive on Damascus gateway, retake ground
