Special adviser to Syrian President Assad dies following car crash under unclear circumstances

DAMASCUS (AP) — Syrian President Bashar Assad’s office says a close adviser to Assad has died following a car accident that left her hospitalized for four days. Luna al-Shibl, a former journalist, had worked as the director of Assad’s political and media offices and as a special adviser to the president. She was slapped with U.S. sanctions in 2020 along with five other Syrian military, government and financial officials, and later was also sanctioned by the United Kingdom. The U.K.-based opposition war monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that another car hit al-Shibl and its driver was arrested. Official statements on the crash did not mention another car.