THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Syria's Bashar al-Assad and his wife voted in a referendum on Sunday on a new constitution aimed at defusing nearly a year of protests that have brought the country to the brink of civil war.
Assad and wife Asma struggled to reach the voting centre at the headquarters of state-owned television and radio, as cheering employees crowded to greet them, in footage aired on Syrian television.
"Allah, Syria and Bashar only," chanted the crowds to Assad who turned out in a navy blue suit. The blonde-haired first lady, in a black and grey suit, waved to onlookers.
The couple went together behind the booth curtain where voters are supposed to make their choices in privacy, before casting their ballots.
"The attack on us is a media assault," he said addressing the crowds on the staircase, apparently referring to a continuous coverage by Arab satellite channels of his forces' deadly crackdown on protests.
"It is true that media is important, but it does not beat reality," he said.
The West immediately dismissed the vote as "a sham". » | Sunday, February 26, 2012
THE SUNDAY TIMES: Syria: Will anyone dare stop the Syrian slaughter? – As the death toll mounts across Syria – and calls grow louder for the rebels to be armed with Western weapons – the fear on the ground is that things are only going to get worse. » | Richard Spencer, Middle East Correspondent | Sunday, February 26, 2012
