Close aide of Syria president dies after car crash: office

BEIRUT: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad´s media adviser Luna al-Shibl died on Friday three days after being injured in a car crash, Assad´s office announced.

“The presidency of the Syrian Arab Republic mourns the death of the adviser Luna al-Shibl, who passed away today after a serious car accident”, it said in a statement.

“She served in recent years as a director of the political and media office of the presidency and then as a special adviser to the presidency,” it added.

State media reported on Tuesday that she had suffered a “cerebral haemorrhage” which required emergency surgery after her car “veered off the road” .

The 48-year-old rose to prominence for quitting a prestigious journalism career at Qatar-based broadcaster Al Jazeera to become Assad´s media adviser at a time when Damascus was cracking down on peaceful protesters in 2011, triggering Syria´s ongoing civil war.

But her role expanded well beyond communications, carving out a place within Assad´s inner circle as she accompanied him to high-level meetings in Syria and on his rare visits abroad.