Syria: Former First Lady dies at 86

Anisa Ahmed Makhlouf, the mother of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has passed away at the age of 86. Makhlouf, the wife of late Syrian President Hafez al-Assad, died after years of illness at a hospital in the capital Damascus on Saturday. She was born in the western Syrian city of Latakia and married the former president in 1957. The country’s presidential office issued a statement confirming her death and thanking people for their condolences. Bashar was Makhlouf's third child out of the five, including Bushra, Bassel, Majed and Maher.