Hafiz al Assad

Hafiz al Assad (1930-2000) was a Syrian statesman. He was the President of Syria from 1971 until his death in 2000. He strengthened oil-based economy of the country and suppressed political opposition and the uprising of Muslim extrimisms (1979-82). During the Gulf War of 1991, he supported the coalition forces. He was succeeded in 2000 by his son Bashar al Assad (1965- ).