Bashar Al Assad has been the president of Syria since 2000, when he succeeded his father, Hafaz Al Assad. The Asssads are a member of the Alawites- a Shi’a sect which makes up 13% of the population and are also known as the “Arab Spring”. In 2011 protests calling for more democratic rights and political reforms sparked and spread from Tunisia and into the Arab states in north Africa and beyond. Bashar Al Assad’s army is now in a civil war against the anti- government rebels. Promoting democracy protests began in March 2011 in the city of Deraa after the arrest and torture of some teenagers who painted revolutionary slogans on a school wall. The government tried to use force to stop the rebels, but they fought back. By July 2011, hundreds of thousands were taking to the streets across the country. Rebels eventually began to take up arms, first to defend themselves and later to get rid of security forces from their local areas.