President Bashar al-Assad shared the "iftar" meal during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan with political and religious figures Sunday, praising Syrians for supporting the army, state news agency SANA said.

Assad "joined an iftar meal... with prominent figures in Syrian society including party-affiliated and independent politicians, as well as Muslim and Christian clerics, syndicates, unions and civil society members," SANA said.

At the gathering, the president praised the Syrian people for "standing as one with the armed forces to defend Syria and its resources."