Syria's Bashar al-Assad doesn't think Clinton, Trump have enough experience to be president

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is weighing in on the U.S. presidential election, saying he thinks the candidates have a "dangerous" lack of experience.

In an interview with NBC News, Assad, whose country erupted in civil war five years ago and has entire cities controlled by the Islamic State, said someone working in the government or foreign affairs for "a few years" is not prepared to become president. "Who had this experience before?" he asked. "Obama? Or George Bush? Or [Bill] Clinton before? None of them had any experience. This is the problem with the United States ... Of course it is dangerous for the country generally."

Since the Syrian civil war started, more than 250,000 people have died; the number continues to climb, although the United Nations has stopped counting. Assad — who was an ophthalmologist before taking control of Syria from his late father after Bashar's older brother died in a car crash — has been accused of torturing his own people and targeting civilians with barrel bombs, but he told NBC News he's just misunderstood. "I hope that history will see me as the man who protected his country, from the terrorism and from the intervention, and saved its sovereignty," he said. "When you protect your country from the terrorists, and you kill terrorists, and you defeat terrorists, you're not brutal. You are a patriot."

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