Assad Begins a Third Term, Vowing to Look After Syria

The New York Times reports on the Wednesday swearing-in of Bashar al-Assad, who declared himself re-elected to the Syrian presidency on June 3 in an election that was largely seen as a “gesture of calculated defiance” towards Western and Arab governments seeking his ouster.

“With his right hand on the Quran, the holy book of Islam, Mr. Assad took the oath at the People’s Palace overlooking Damascus,” writes Hwaida Saad. “But even as he prepared for a new term, rebels offered a counterpoint, firing five mortar shells into Damascus and killing four people. Two shells landed near the central Umayyad Square, the official news agency SANA said.

“State-run television had earlier broadcast what it said was live video of the Syrian leader arriving in a black sedan as a military band played the national anthem. Smiling and confident, Mr. Assad, 48, strode on a red carpet and inspected an honor guard as he entered a hall crammed with lawmakers and other dignitaries.”

U.N. Working to Start Cross-Border Aid to Rebel-Held Syria

The AP reports that the U.N. has supplies in position for the first aid convoys that will deliver medical and food products from neighboring countries to nearly 3 million people in Syria’s rebel-held areas. On Saturday, the Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution saying that cross-border deliveries no longer require permission from the Assad government.

Humanitarian chief Valerie Amos and the heads of the World Food Program and UNICEF said in a statement that the resolution “represents a breakthrough in our efforts to get aid to Syrians in need.”

The aid will be delivered through four border crossings — two in Turkey, one in Iraq and one in Jordan. The Council has authorized the U.N. to monitor the loading of all aid shipments before they cross into Syria. Amos and her fellow officials said they are working with heads of other U.N. agencies and NGOs “on how best to implement the resolution, as a matter of urgency.”

With Aleppo Under Renewed Siege, Civilians Flee

NPR reports on a refugee surge triggered by the new Assad campaign in Aleppo, where “a rebel defeat could be a crushing blow to what is left of the country’s three-year rebellion.”

An exodus of civilians has streamed towards the Turkish border city of Kilis, already overcrowded with Syrians. At a local bus station, families squatted on blankets, with grandparents guarding family belongings while children sat nearby.

“They are living outside the bus station,” translator Abeer Farhoud told NPR. “They may stay in the streets, in the gardens. How long they will stay here, no one knows.”

The radio also says that the fate of the 200,000 Syrians who remain in Aleppo is just as uncertain. Syrian journalist Zaina Erhaim, who had been in Turkey, moved back to the city this week. “We still have shops, we still have schools for kids, we still have teenagers; life still goes on here. Many are determined not to leave,” she said.

Istanbul to Expel Syrian Refugees, Sending Them to Border Camps

AFP reports that Istanbul’s mayor has said Turkey will take “drastic measures” to manage the thousands of Syrian refugees who have flooded the city, including forcibly moving them to camps in the southeast. Huseyin Avni Mutlu said that 67,000 Syrian refugees now live in Istanbul.

Mutlu said Turkish officials would consider sending refugees begging in the streets back to overcrowded border camps “without their consent … In a very short time, we will take new and drastic measures.”

He added: “We are working on legislation that will enable us to send the refugees to the camps even without their consent.” He said that 500 had been sent back to a camp in the southeast Turkey in June.

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