Presidential candidates start campaigns in Syria
Iran Press TV
Mon May 12, 2014 2:26PM GMT
Syria's presidential election candidates have started their campaigns in the country.
The event comes after Supreme Constitutional Court issued the final list of candidates on May 10.
Maher Abdul-Hafiz Hajjar, lawmaker from Aleppo, Hassan Abdullah al-Nouri, lawmaker from Damascus, and Bashar Hafez al-Assad, incumbent president, are three candidates for June's presidential election.
Posters of candidates and their slogans are also visible all around the capital, Damascus.
Under the Syrian law, each candidate needs to secure the support of 35 lawmakers in the 254-member parliament as each MP is allowed to back one candidate.
The vote must take place between 60 and 90 days before President Assad's seven-year term comes to an end on July 17.
Syria's presidential election will start on June 3. The vote will be held in the government-controlled parts of the crisis-hit country. Syrians living abroad are also set to vote on May 28.
Damascus has insisted that it would hold the vote despite the foreign-backed militancy that has plagued the Arab country for more than three years.
Last month, Syria dismissed Western and opposition accusations regarding the presidential election, saying that it is planning to hold a free and transparent vote.
Syria has been gripped by deadly violence since March 2011. Over 150,000 people have reportedly been killed and millions displaced due to the violence fueled by the foreign-backed militants.
According to reports, the Western powers and their regional allies - especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey - are supporting the militants operating inside Syria.
HRM/AB
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