Syrian President Bashar al-Assad led Eid al-Fitr prayers in the central city of Hama on Sunday, appearing in public outside the capital for the first time in a year.
Assad’s office published images of him praying inside the brightly-lit Al-Nuri mosque at dawn on Sunday before greeting worshippers outside.
He was flanked by Islamic Endowments Minister Mohammad Abdel-Sattar Sayyed and Syria’s top Muslim cleric Ahmad Badredine Hassoun.
Eid al-Fitr marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, during which Muslims fast from dawn until dusk.
Ahead of the holiday, Syria’s Government released more than 670 detainees — including some children born to prisoners — from jails around Damascus on Saturday.
Assad’s last public appearance outside Damascus was during Eid al-Fitr in July 2016, which he spent in third city Homs.
Presidential trips outside the capital have become rare since Syria’s conflict broke out more than six years ago.