Assad puts his face on Syrian banknote

PRESIDENT Bashar al-assad has appeared on Syrian currency for the first time with his portrait printed on a new 2,000-pound banknote that went into circulation yesterday.

Duraid Durgham, governor of the Central Bank, said the note – equal to about £3 – was one of several printed years ago but the decision to put it into use was delayed “due to the circumstances of the war and exchange rate fluctuations”.

The Syrian currency has plunged in value since the conflict began in 2011, from 47 pounds to the dollar in 2010 to about 500 pounds at present.

♦ A suicide car bomber pursued by security forces blew himself up in Damascus yesterday, reportedly killing 18 people in the deadliest attack to hit the Syrian capital in months.

State media and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said security forces had earlier intercepted three car bombers heading for the city in the morning.