On an unseasonably mild day last August , a small group of Prime Minister Rafik Hariri 's closest political allies could tell from his flushed face and subdued manner that something awful had happened in the Syrian capital of Damascus , where he had been summoned to a meeting with President Bashar al-Assad .
Bashar al-Assad
Damascus
/people/person/place_of_birth
PERSON
Rafik Hariri
LOCATION
Damascus
PERSON
Bashar al-Assad