As well as being optimistic about the future of his war-ravaged country, Rami Al Ali has other reasons to be upbeat: he is about to become the first Syrian fashion designer to show his work at Paris Couture Week.
The invitation to appear on the world's most prestigious fashion stage is a huge endorsement for the 53-year-old from the eastern city of Deir Ez-Zor who turned to design after a childhood admiring his architect father's drawings.
