A Look At The Assads: The Family That Has Ruled Syria For Decades

Former Syrian President Hafez Assad and his wife Aniseh sit in front of their sons (left to right) Maher, Bashar, Bassel and Majd, and daughter Bushra. SANA via Reuters

Who Are The Assads? Inside The Family That Has Ruled Syria For Decades -- NBC

Meet the Assads, the family that has controlled Syria for decades — and is the source of enough palace intrigue that they’ve been compared to the Sopranos.

Bashar Assad, the 47-year-old president, went to school to be an eye doctor and was not thought to have political aspirations. But he became heir apparent after the early death of his brother, and now he runs a country of 21 million people that is in the crosshairs of the West.

Assad has fought an uprising for more than two years, and his forces are accused by the United States of using chemical weapons on hundreds of people last week in a suburb of the capital.

As the world waits for a potential Western strike on Assad, here’s a look at the family tree.

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Update: Syria's first lady draws Marie Antoinette comparisons -- NBC

My Comment: They remind me of the Gaddafis of Libya. Born in privilege .... they end up believing that they are entitled to it forever.