Syrian President Bashar al-Assad makes a rare public appearance on Saturday to unveil a statue at Damascus University.<br/> <br />Huge crowds of supporters turned out for the event broadcast by state TV - surrounding Assad and cheering as patriotic music blared.<br/> <br />The public engagement comes close on the heels of an Israeli air strike reportedly targeting a shipment of missiles bound for Hezbollah guerrillas in neighbouring Lebanon.<br/> <br />Assad's forces have mounted a string of attacks from the capital Damascus and the city of Homs out to the Mediterranean Coast.<br/> <br />More than 70,000 people have died in the two year uprising led by Syria's Sunni Muslim majority against four decades of Assad family rule.
