Question: Facts: - birth name: bashar hafez al-assad - party: syrian ba'ath party - deputy: sulayman qaddah mohammed saeed bekheitan hilal hilal - predecessor: abdul halim khaddam -lrb- acting -rrb- hafez al-assad - commands: syrian armed forces - otherparty: national progressive front - branch: syrian armed forces - leader: abdullah al-ahmar - vicepresident: abdul halim khaddam zuhair masharqa farouk al-sharaa najah al-attar - spouse: asma al-assad - office: president of the syrian regional branch of syria regional secretary of the regional command - serviceyears: 1988 -- present - unit: republican guard -lrb- before 2000 -rrb- - name: bashar al-assad - website: -lsb- http://sana.sy/eng/article/5.htm official website -rsb- - birth place: damascus , syria - primeminister: muhammad farid hijab omar ibrahim ghalawanji wael nader al-halqi mustafa mero muhammad naji al-otari adel safar riyad - alma mater: damascus university - battles: syrian civil war - allegiance: syria - children: hafez zein karim - term start: 17 july 2000 24 june 2000 - image: bashar al-assad -lrb- cropped -rrb- . jpg - religion: islam -lrb- alawite -rrb- - rank: 15px marshal Based on these bullet points, write a short biography describing the life of bashar al-assad .
Answer:
bashar hafez al-assad -lrb- '' '' , levantine pronunciation : ; born 11 september 1965 -rrb- is the president of syria , commander-in-chief of syrian armed forces , general secretary of the ruling ba'ath party and regional secretary of the party 's branch in syria .in 2000 he succeeded hafez al-assad , his father , who had led syria for 30 years until his death .assad graduated from the medical school of damascus university in 1988 , and started to work as a doctor in the army .four years later , he attended postgraduate studies at the western eye hospital , in london , specializing in ophthalmology .in 1994 , after his elder brother bassel was killed in a car crash , bashar was recalled to syria to take over bassel 's role as heir apparent .he entered the military academy , taking charge of the syrian occupation of lebanon in 1998 .in december 2000 , assad married asma assad , born akhras .assad was reconfirmed by the national electorate as president of syria in 2000 and 2007 , after the people 's council of syria had voted to propose the incumbent uncontested each time .the form of government assad presides over is an authoritarian regime .the assad regime has described itself as secular , while experts have contended that the regime exploits ethnic and sectarian tensions in the country to remain in power .the regime 's narrow sectarian base relying upon the alawite minority has also been noted .initially seen by the domestic and international community as a potential reformer , this expectation ceased when assad ordered mass crackdowns and military sieges on arab spring protesters , leading to the syrian civil war .the syrian opposition , the united states , canada , the european union and the majority of the arab league have called for al-assad 's resignation from the presidency .during the syrian civil war , assad was personally implicated in war crimes and crimes against humanity by the united nations , and was the top of a list of individuals indicted for the greatest responsibility in war...