BEIRUT/ABU DHABI (Reuters) - For a government under siege from rebels and international sanctions, President Bashar al-Assad's administration shows no lack of confidence in being able to go on feeding its people.
But as official media offer glowing reports of new bakeries serving up tasty, subsidised bread and ministers assure Syrians of ample stocks in state granaries, repeated failures of tenders to import wheat and other staples tell a different story - one echoed in tales from the streets of scarcity and rising prices.