Maher al-Assad
Encyclopedia
Maher al-Assad is the brother of Syria
n president Bashar al-Assad
and the commander of the Republican Guard and the army's elite Fourth Armored Division
, which together with Syria's secret police form the core of the country's security forces. He is part of Bashar's inner circle and is thought by some to be the second most powerful man in Syria after President Bashar al-Assad.
. He was just two years old when his father became president of Syria. Like the other children in the Assad family
, he was raised out of the public spotlight. Maher went to the Academy of Freedom School for his secondary education and then studied business at Damascus University. Following university he pursued a career in the military like his older brother Basil Assad who was being groomed to be his father's successor. When Basil died in a car crash in 1994, he was mentioned as a possible successor to Hafez, but in the end, Bashar succeeded his father even though he lacked the military experience and political ambition. It was speculated that Maher's reputation as hot-tempered influenced the decision in favour of Bashar.
Maher is married to Manal (née al-Jadaan) with whom he has two daughters. Maher, like his brother Bashar, is married outside of the Alawite sect to a Sunni woman. He operates a number of different business projects in Lebanon with his cousin Rami Makhlouf
. There are reports of tensions between the two, which is considered why parts of the Makhlouf business were shifted in 2005 to Dubai
. Some observers believe the transfers were made because the Makhloufs were worried that they were going to be made the scapegoats of an anti-corruption propaganda campaign.
Maher for a while controlled online media site Cham Press through his brother-in-law Mohamed Hamsho, a Sunni Dasmacene, who is said to be a longtime front for Maher's shady business deals. On 23 May 2011, the EU placed sanctions on Hamsho for providing funding to the regime which allowed violence against demonstrators during the 2011 Syrian uprising
. According to Fortune Magazine, Maher benefited from the billion dollar money laundering operation at the Lebanese al-Madina bank which collapsed in 2003 at the start of the Iraq War. Al-Madina was used to launder kickback money of Iraqi officials and their partners in the illegal gaming of the UN's oil-for-food programme
. Sources put the amount transferred and laundered through al-Madina at more than $1 billion, with a 25 percent commission going to Syrian officials and their Lebanese allies, among the recipients of this money was Bashar Assad's brother Maher.
Al-Madina bank records indicate that Maher's office manager, Khalid Qaddur, was transferred at no cost a Beirut apartment valued at $2.5 million, a transfer that investigators believe was intended to put it under Maher's control. The entire file on the Madina bank collapse is at the Lebanese Ministry of Justice
, except for key parts that implicate Maher, which are still at the Lebanese Central Bank
because people fear being killed over it. On 23 June 2011, the EU placed sanctions on Maher's office manager, Khalid Qaddur, for providing funding to the regime which allowed violence against demonstrators during the 2011 Syrian uprising. Similar sanctions were also placed on Ra'if al-Quwatli another business associate of Maher.
.
In June 2000, Maher was elected to the ruling Baath Party
's central committee and subsequently
was influential in persuading his brother Bashar during the first few months of his rule to put an end to the political openness of the short lived Damascus Spring
. Three years later Maher met in Jordan with Israeli businessman Eitan Bentzur, a former director-general of the Israeli Foreign Ministry, and offered to reopen peace negotiations with Israel without preconditions. The offer was rejected by Arial Sharon the Prime Minister of Israel
.
Maher has often appeared in public with Bashar and is said to be one of his closest advisers. He has competed with General Assef Shawqat
, who is married to his sister Bushra al-Assad
and is the former head of military intelligence, for influence in the Assad regime. In October 1999, he is rumoured to have shot Assef Shawqat in the stomach during an argument. Assef survived, and the two are said to have good relations now. Bashar, Maher, and Assef are said to form the inner circle of power in the Assad regime.
Both Shawkat and Maher al-Assad were mentioned in a leaked draft version of the Mehlis report
as suspects in the 2005 murder of former Lebanese
prime minister Rafik al-Hariri. According to the draft version, "one witness of Syrian origin but resident in Lebanon, who claims to have worked for the Syrian intelligence services in Lebanon, stated that approximately two weeks after the adoption of Security Council resolution 1559
, Maher Assad, Assef Shawkat, Hassan Khalil, Bahjat Suleyman
and Jamil Al-Sayyed decided to assassinate Rafik Hariri."
In 2008, Maher was in charge of putting down a prison revolt in Saidnaya
. Around 25 people were killed during the violent crack down. Human rights groups have video footage that shows Maher taking photographs with his mobile phone of the dismembered bodies of political prisoners after the riot. Maher's sister-in-law, Majd al-Jadaan, who lives in exile confirmed that the individual in the video footage was him.
, the coastal city of Banias
, the central province of Homs
and the northern province of Idlib
. The Los Angeles Times
reported that video footage exists, which activists and observers claim shows Maher personally shooting at unarmed protesters, who are demanding the fall of the Assad regime in the Barzeh suburb of Damascus
. Defecting soldiers under Maher's command report they were given orders by him to use deadly force
against unarmed protesters. One defecting sniper reported that during the protests in Deraa
: "We were ordered to aim for the head or heart from the beginning. We were not given specific numbers but told to kill as many as possible as long as there were protests."
Turkey
's prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan
, stated that Maher's actions during the Syrian uprising approached "savagery", and he pressured Bashar Assad to remove Maher from command of the military and to send him into exile. The United States
on 27 April 2011 placed sanctions on Maher for being a facilitator of human rights violations in Syria. Two weeks later on 10 May 2011 the EU
sanctioned Maher for being the principal overseer of violence against demonstrators during the 2011 Syrian uprising.
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
n president Bashar al-Assad
Bashar al-Assad
Bashar al-Assad is the President of Syria and Regional Secretary of the Ba'ath Party. His father Hafez al-Assad ruled Syria for 29 years until his death in 2000. Al-Assad was elected in 2000, re-elected in 2007, unopposed each time.- Early Life :...
and the commander of the Republican Guard and the army's elite Fourth Armored Division
Defense companies
The Defense Companies were a paramilitary force in Syria that were controlled by Rifaat al-Assad. Their task was to defend the Assad government, and Damascus, from internal and external attack...
, which together with Syria's secret police form the core of the country's security forces. He is part of Bashar's inner circle and is thought by some to be the second most powerful man in Syria after President Bashar al-Assad.
Early life, education, and family
Maher al-Assad was born on 8 December 1967, the youngest child of Aniseh (née Makhlouf) and Hafez al-AssadHafez al-Assad
Hafez ibn 'Ali ibn Sulayman al-Assad or more commonly Hafez al-Assad was the President of Syria for three decades. Assad's rule consolidated the power of the central government after decades of coups and counter-coups, such as Operation Wappen in 1957 conducted by the Eisenhower administration and...
. He was just two years old when his father became president of Syria. Like the other children in the Assad family
Assad family
The Assad family has ruled Syria, since Hafez al-Assad became Syrian President in 1971 and established an authoritarian regime under the control of the Baath party. After his death in 2000, his son Bashar al-Assad succeeded him....
, he was raised out of the public spotlight. Maher went to the Academy of Freedom School for his secondary education and then studied business at Damascus University. Following university he pursued a career in the military like his older brother Basil Assad who was being groomed to be his father's successor. When Basil died in a car crash in 1994, he was mentioned as a possible successor to Hafez, but in the end, Bashar succeeded his father even though he lacked the military experience and political ambition. It was speculated that Maher's reputation as hot-tempered influenced the decision in favour of Bashar.
Maher is married to Manal (née al-Jadaan) with whom he has two daughters. Maher, like his brother Bashar, is married outside of the Alawite sect to a Sunni woman. He operates a number of different business projects in Lebanon with his cousin Rami Makhlouf
Rami Makhlouf
Rami Makhlouf is a wealthy Syrian businessman and the maternal cousin of President Bashar Assad. He is the main owner of Syriatel and according to the Financial Times he is thought to control as much as 60% of the Syrian economy through his web of business interests that include...
. There are reports of tensions between the two, which is considered why parts of the Makhlouf business were shifted in 2005 to Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
. Some observers believe the transfers were made because the Makhloufs were worried that they were going to be made the scapegoats of an anti-corruption propaganda campaign.
Maher for a while controlled online media site Cham Press through his brother-in-law Mohamed Hamsho, a Sunni Dasmacene, who is said to be a longtime front for Maher's shady business deals. On 23 May 2011, the EU placed sanctions on Hamsho for providing funding to the regime which allowed violence against demonstrators during the 2011 Syrian uprising
2011 Syrian uprising
The 2011 Syrian uprising is an ongoing internal conflict occurring in Syria. Protests started on 26 January 2011, and escalated into an uprising by 15 March 2011...
. According to Fortune Magazine, Maher benefited from the billion dollar money laundering operation at the Lebanese al-Madina bank which collapsed in 2003 at the start of the Iraq War. Al-Madina was used to launder kickback money of Iraqi officials and their partners in the illegal gaming of the UN's oil-for-food programme
Oil-for-Food Programme
The Oil-for-Food Programme , established by the United Nations in 1995 was established with the stated intent to allow Iraq to sell oil on the world market in exchange for food, medicine, and other humanitarian needs for ordinary Iraqi citizens without allowing Iraq to boost its military...
. Sources put the amount transferred and laundered through al-Madina at more than $1 billion, with a 25 percent commission going to Syrian officials and their Lebanese allies, among the recipients of this money was Bashar Assad's brother Maher.
Al-Madina bank records indicate that Maher's office manager, Khalid Qaddur, was transferred at no cost a Beirut apartment valued at $2.5 million, a transfer that investigators believe was intended to put it under Maher's control. The entire file on the Madina bank collapse is at the Lebanese Ministry of Justice
Ministry of Justice (Lebanon)
The Ministry of Justice is one of the ministries of the Lebanese government. The incumbent Minister of Justice is Shakib Qortbawi of the Free Patriotic Movement....
, except for key parts that implicate Maher, which are still at the Lebanese Central Bank
Ministry of Justice (Lebanon)
The Ministry of Justice is one of the ministries of the Lebanese government. The incumbent Minister of Justice is Shakib Qortbawi of the Free Patriotic Movement....
because people fear being killed over it. On 23 June 2011, the EU placed sanctions on Maher's office manager, Khalid Qaddur, for providing funding to the regime which allowed violence against demonstrators during the 2011 Syrian uprising. Similar sanctions were also placed on Ra'if al-Quwatli another business associate of Maher.
Military career
After Basil's death in 1994, Maher assumed command of a brigade in the Republican Guard and distinguished himself as a good commander. His time as brigade commander allowed him to gain valuable military experience and build personal ties with his officers. After the death of his father in 2000, he was promoted from major to lieutenant colonel. Maher subsequently became commander of the Republican Guard, a 10,000 strong unit whose loyalty is said to be guaranteed by the significant share of revenue that it receives from the oil fields in the Deir ez-Zor region, and the commander of the army's elite Fourth Armored Division which was once his uncle Rifaat Assad's Defense companiesDefense companies
The Defense Companies were a paramilitary force in Syria that were controlled by Rifaat al-Assad. Their task was to defend the Assad government, and Damascus, from internal and external attack...
.
In June 2000, Maher was elected to the ruling Baath Party
Baath Party
The Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party was a political party mixing Arab nationalist and Arab socialist interests, opposed to Western imperialism, and calling for the renaissance or resurrection and unification of the Arab world into a single state. Ba'ath is also spelled Ba'th or Baath and means...
's central committee and subsequently
was influential in persuading his brother Bashar during the first few months of his rule to put an end to the political openness of the short lived Damascus Spring
Damascus Spring
The Damascus Spring was a period of intense political and social debate in Syria which started after the death of President Hafiz al-Asad in June 2000 and continued to some degree until autumn 2001, when most of the activities associated with it were suppressed by the government.- Background...
. Three years later Maher met in Jordan with Israeli businessman Eitan Bentzur, a former director-general of the Israeli Foreign Ministry, and offered to reopen peace negotiations with Israel without preconditions. The offer was rejected by Arial Sharon the Prime Minister of Israel
Prime Minister of Israel
The Prime Minister of Israel is the head of the Israeli government and the most powerful political figure in Israel . The prime minister is the country's chief executive. The official residence of the prime minister, Beit Rosh Hamemshala is in Jerusalem...
.
Maher has often appeared in public with Bashar and is said to be one of his closest advisers. He has competed with General Assef Shawqat
Assef Shawqat
General Assef Shawkat is the deputy Minister of Defense of Syria since September 2011. He is married to Bashar Assad's sister Bushra and is from the Sunni sect. He previously served as the army's deputy chief of staff from July 2009 to September 2011. He then bypassed the position of chief of...
, who is married to his sister Bushra al-Assad
Bushra al-Assad
Bushra al-Assad is the first child and only daughter of Hafez al-Assad, who was the president of Syria from 1971 to 2000. She is the sister of current Syrian President Bashar al-Assad...
and is the former head of military intelligence, for influence in the Assad regime. In October 1999, he is rumoured to have shot Assef Shawqat in the stomach during an argument. Assef survived, and the two are said to have good relations now. Bashar, Maher, and Assef are said to form the inner circle of power in the Assad regime.
Both Shawkat and Maher al-Assad were mentioned in a leaked draft version of the Mehlis report
Mehlis report
The Mehlis Report is the result of the United Nations' investigation into the 14 February 2005 assassination of Lebanon's former prime minister Rafik al-Hariri. The investigation was launched in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1595 and headed by the German judge, Detlev Mehlis...
as suspects in the 2005 murder of former Lebanese
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
prime minister Rafik al-Hariri. According to the draft version, "one witness of Syrian origin but resident in Lebanon, who claims to have worked for the Syrian intelligence services in Lebanon, stated that approximately two weeks after the adoption of Security Council resolution 1559
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1559
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1559, adopted on September 2, 2004, after recalling resolutions 425 , 426 , 520 and 1553 on the situation in Lebanon, the Council supported free and fair presidential elections in Lebanon and called upon remaining foreign forces to withdraw from the...
, Maher Assad, Assef Shawkat, Hassan Khalil, Bahjat Suleyman
General Security Directorate (Syria)
The General Security Directorate is the most important civil intelligence service of Syria.- Organization :Its divisions are:*Division of Homeland Security*Division of External Security*Division of Palestinian Affairs...
and Jamil Al-Sayyed decided to assassinate Rafik Hariri."
In 2008, Maher was in charge of putting down a prison revolt in Saidnaya
Saidnaya
Saidnaya is a city located in the mountains, 1500 metres above sea level, north of the city of Damascus in Syria and was one of the episcopal cities of the ancient Patriarchate of Antioch...
. Around 25 people were killed during the violent crack down. Human rights groups have video footage that shows Maher taking photographs with his mobile phone of the dismembered bodies of political prisoners after the riot. Maher's sister-in-law, Majd al-Jadaan, who lives in exile confirmed that the individual in the video footage was him.
2011 Syrian uprising
Since the beginning of the Syrian uprising in mid-March, Maher's troops have played a key role in violently suppressing protests in the southern city of DaraaSiege of Daraa
The Siege of Daraa was a military operation, conducted by the Syrian military, in the city of Daraa against what the government called terrorist groups, while the opposition called it a crackdown against pro-democracy protestors.-Background:...
, the coastal city of Banias
Siege of Baniyas
The Siege of Baniyas was a military operation conducted by the Syrian military in the city of Baniyas against what the government calls terrorist groups, while the opposition called it a crackdown against pro-democracy protestors.-Background:...
, the central province of Homs
Siege of Homs
The Siege of Homs is a military operation being conducted by the Syrian military in the city of Homs against what the government calls terrorist groups. The Syrian opposition however have called it a crackdown against pro-democracy protestors...
and the northern province of Idlib
Siege of Jisr al-Shughur
The Siege of Jisr al-Shughour was an operation conducted by the Syrian security forces in the city of Jisr ash-Shugur against what the government called terrorist groups, while the opposition called it a crackdown against pro-democracy protesters as part of the 2011 Syrian uprising.-Siege:On 4...
. The Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
reported that video footage exists, which activists and observers claim shows Maher personally shooting at unarmed protesters, who are demanding the fall of the Assad regime in the Barzeh suburb of Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
. Defecting soldiers under Maher's command report they were given orders by him to use deadly force
Deadly force
Deadly force, as defined by the United States Armed Forces, is the force which a person uses, causing—or that a person knows, or should know, would create a substantial risk of causing—death or serious bodily harm...
against unarmed protesters. One defecting sniper reported that during the protests in Deraa
Siege of Daraa
The Siege of Daraa was a military operation, conducted by the Syrian military, in the city of Daraa against what the government called terrorist groups, while the opposition called it a crackdown against pro-democracy protestors.-Background:...
: "We were ordered to aim for the head or heart from the beginning. We were not given specific numbers but told to kill as many as possible as long as there were protests."
Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
's prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan
Recep Tayyip Erdogan
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been Prime Minister of Turkey since 2003 and is chairman of the ruling Justice and Development Party , which holds a majority of the seats in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey. Erdoğan served as Mayor of Istanbul from 1994 to 1998. He graduated in 1981 from Marmara...
, stated that Maher's actions during the Syrian uprising approached "savagery", and he pressured Bashar Assad to remove Maher from command of the military and to send him into exile. The United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on 27 April 2011 placed sanctions on Maher for being a facilitator of human rights violations in Syria. Two weeks later on 10 May 2011 the EU
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
sanctioned Maher for being the principal overseer of violence against demonstrators during the 2011 Syrian uprising.
External links
- Dossier: Maher Assad, Middle East Intelligence Bulletin, August 2000.
- Bashar al-Assad's inner circle, BBC, 18 May 2011.
- Syria's "thug-in chief", Global Post, 27 June 2011.