Polling station for Syrian citizens in Lebanon in a tent. The voting booths are partitioned off with cloths to which Syrian flags are attached. Portraits of the three candidates hang from the ceiling. Polling officers assign free voting booths to voters.
By stage-managing his re-election in a poll widely dismissed as a farce, Syria's President Bashar al-Assad has killed two birds with one stone: he has forced his compatriots to demonstrate their loyalty and submission and will use the outcome to get money from abroad. He needs both to stay in power. By Kristin Helberg
