Syria's first lady is seen in public for the first time in months as air strikes by her husband's forces kill at least 39 people, more than half of them civilians. Pictures of Asma al Assad smiling with the young winners of the a science competition in Damascus have been uploaded on to the Syrian Presidency's Instagram and Facebook accounts today. President Bashar al-Assad's British-born wife has not been photographed in public for many months, and her appearance comes as government air strikes hit two main battlegrounds in the north of the country, according to the The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
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Bashar al-Assad's wife is pictured with young people in Damascus today
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Appearance comes as Government air strikes kill at least 39 people
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It's believed at least half of those killed in the air strikes were civilians
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More than 200,000 people have lost their lives since conflict started in 2011
The conflict began when forces loyal to President @placeholder launched a brutal crackdown on peaceful pro-reform protests in March 2011 that triggered a complex, multi-sided civil war.