It was a strategy that worked well for Hafez al-Assad , Bashar 's father and predecessor as president , who would often rely on proxies to carry on his battles while he tried to use Syria 's influence with the Palestinian groups as a bargaining chip to advance Syria 's agenda .
Hafez al-Assad /people/person/nationality Syria
Hafez al-Assad /people/person/nationality Syria
PRP VBD DT NN WDT VBD RB IN NNP NNP , NNP POS NN CC NN IN NN , WP MD RB VB IN NNS TO VB IN PRP$ NNS IN PRP VBD TO VB NNP POS NN IN DT JJ NNS IN DT NN NN TO NN NNP POS NN .
Hafez al-Assad
PERSON
Syria
LOCATION
/people/person/nationality
Hafez al-Assad
PERSON
Syria
LOCATION
/people/person/nationality