U.S. blasts Syrian dictator for opening social media account.
Remy de la Mauviniere/AP
Note to dictators: Instagram won’t solve your public-relations problems. The U.S. State Department had some harsh words for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s new Instagram account, calling the move a “despicable PR stunt.” "It's repulsive that the Assad regime would use this to gloss over the brutality and suffering it's causing," State Department deputy spokeswoman Marie Harf said. Assad opened the account under the username “syrianpresidency” and began sharing polished images of Assad and his glamorous wife, Asma. He’s definitely not showing scenes of the violence that has killed more than 100,000 so far.
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