Syria TV shows Assad after rebels say they hit his convoy DAMASCUS, Syria Syrian state TV broadcast what it said were images of President Bashar Assad attending prayers in a Damascus mosque at the start of a Muslim holiday Thursday. In the broadcast, Assad, dressed in a suit, was seen praying next to Syria's grand mufti to mark Eid al-Fitr, the three-day holiday that ends the holy month of Ramadan. The broadcast came after reports that rebels were claiming they'd hit Assad's convoy with mortars as he was headed to prayers. The assertions were emphatically denied to CBS News by a top-ranking security official, who said, "It is absolutely untrue. We have gotten used to such false and stupid news by Al-Arabiya and other Gulf-financed news channels, but I would like to assure you this time that Assad is safe and sound. The TV said Assad attended prayers in the Anas bin Malik Mosque in Damascus early on Thursday. It was the Syrian leader's third public appearance in over a week as his regime tries to capitalize on recent gains on the battlefield against rebels fighting to oust him from power.