Rifaat Ali al-Assad ( ar, رِفْعَتُ عَلِيِّ ٱلْأَسَدِ, Rifʿat al-ʾAsad; born 22 August 1937) is the younger brother of the late
President of Syria
The president of Syria, officially the president of the Syrian Arab Republic (Arabic: رئيس سوريا) is the head of state of the Syrian Arab Republic. They are vested with sweeping powers that may be delegated, at their sole discretion, to ...
,
Hafez Assad
Hafez al-Assad ', , (, 6 October 1930 – 10 June 2000) was a Syrian statesman and military officer who served as President of Syria from taking power in 1971 until his death in 2000. He was also Prime Minister of Syria from 1970 to 197 ...
, and
Jamil al-Assad
Jamil al-Assad ( ar, جميل الأسد; 1933 – 15 December 2004) was a younger brother of the late Syrian president Hafez al-Assad, and the uncle of present Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad. He served in the Parliament of Syria, called the ''majl ...
, and the uncle of the incumbent President
Bashar al-Assad
Bashar Hafez al-Assad, ', Levantine pronunciation: ; (, born 11 September 1965) is a Syrian politician who is the 19th president of Syria, since 17 July 2000. In addition, he is the commander-in-chief of the Syrian Armed Forces and the ...
. He is alleged by some sources to be the commanding officer responsible for the
Hama massacre
The Hama Massacre ( ar, مجزرة حماة), or Hama Uprising, occurred in February 1982 when the Syrian Arab Army and the Defense Companies, under orders of the country's president Hafez al-Assad, besieged the town of Hama for 27 days in ...
of 1982.
Later declassified material backs his claims that his brother Hafez al-Assad was responsible,
as do a number of commentators.
Despite accusations, Rifaat has always denied culpability.
Rifaat lived in exile in France for 36 years and returned to Syria in October 2021 after being found guilty in France of acquiring millions of euros diverted from the Syrian state.
In September 2022, France's highest court, the
Cour de Cassation
A court of cassation is a high-instance court that exists in some judicial systems. Courts of cassation do not re-examine the facts of a case, they only interpret the relevant law. In this they are appellate courts of the highest instance. In th ...
, confirmed the ruling.
Early life and education
Rifaat al-Assad was born in the village of
Qardaha
Qardaha ( ar, القَرْدَاحَة / ALA-LC: ''Qardāḥah'') is a town in northwestern Syria, in the mountains overlooking the coastal town of Latakia. Nearby localities include Kilmakho to the west, Bustan al-Basha to the southwest, Harf a ...
, near
Lattakia
, coordinates =
, elevation_footnotes =
, elevation_m = 11
, elevation_ft =
, postal_code_type =
, postal_code =
, area_code = Country code: 963 City code: 41
, geocode ...
in western
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
on 22 August 1937. He studied
Political Science
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
and Economics at
Damascus University
The University of Damascus ( ar, جَامِعَةُ دِمَشْقَ, ''Jāmi‘atu Dimashq'') is the largest and oldest university in Syria, located in the capital Damascus and has campuses in other Syrian cities. It was founded in 1923 through ...
and was later given an honorary PhD in Politics from
the Soviet Academy of Sciences.
Early experience
Rifaat joined the
Syrian Arab Army
The Syrian Army, officially the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) ( ar, الْجَيْشُ الْعَرَبيُّ السُّورِيُّ, al-Jayš al-ʿArabī as-Sūrī), is the army, land force branch of the Syrian Armed Forces. It is the dominant military ...
in 1958 as a First Lieutenant, and was rapidly promoted after training in various
Soviet military academies
There existed an evolved system of military education in the Soviet Union that covered a wide range of ages. The Soviet Armed Forces had many tri-service educational opportunities as well as educational institutions for the Ground Forces, the Air ...
(mainly in the
Yekaterinburg
Yekaterinburg ( ; rus, Екатеринбург, p=jɪkətʲɪrʲɪnˈburk), alternatively romanized as Ekaterinburg and formerly known as Sverdlovsk ( rus, Свердло́вск, , svʲɪrˈdlofsk, 1924–1991), is a city and the administra ...
Artillery school).
[ In 1965, he became commander of a special security force loyal to the military wing of the Ba'ath and soon, supported Hafez al-Assad's overthrow of ]Salah Jadid
Salah Jadid (1926 – 19 August 1993, ar, صلاح جديد, Ṣalāḥ Jadīd) was a Syrian general, a leader of the left-wing of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party in Syria, and the country's ''de facto'' leader from 1966 until 1970, when h ...
and seizure of power in 1970.[
He was allowed to form his own paramilitary group, the ]Defense Companies
The Defense Companies ( ar, سرايا الدفاع; ) were a paramilitary force in Syria that were commanded by Rifaat al-Assad. Their task was to defend the Assad government, and Damascus, from internal and external attack. In 1984 the 55,000 st ...
, in 1971, which soon transformed into a powerful and regular military force trained and armed by the Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
. He was a qualified paratrooper
A paratrooper is a military parachutist—someone trained to parachute into a military operation, and usually functioning as part of an airborne force. Military parachutists (troops) and parachutes were first used on a large scale during World ...
.
Under Hafez's rule
Rifaat al-Assad played a key role in his brother's takeover of executive power in 1970, dubbed the Corrective Revolution, and ran the elite internal security forces and the Defense Companies
The Defense Companies ( ar, سرايا الدفاع; ) were a paramilitary force in Syria that were commanded by Rifaat al-Assad. Their task was to defend the Assad government, and Damascus, from internal and external attack. In 1984 the 55,000 st ...
( ar, سرايا الدفاع; ) in the 1970s and early 1980s. In addition to his military posture, Rifaat created the "League of Higher Graduates" ( ar, رابطة الخريجين العليا, ' ), which provided discussion forums on public affairs for Syrian post-graduates, outside the constraints of the Baath party. With more than fifteen branches across Syria, this cultural project gathered tens of thousands of members. He had a pivotal role throughout the 1970s and, until 1984, many saw him as the likely successor to his elder brother. Hafez Assad appointed him second vice president in March 1984.
In 1976, he visited Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
as a guest of Tony Frangiyeh since they had close and personal ties. Referring to their conversation later, he stated "ultimately, you hristiansare okay as tolerated ''dhimmis'' living under Islam. Our reward for apostasy is death: Muslims will not tolerate us the way they might do you; they will kill us as offenders of their religion." referring to the fact that as Alawites
The Alawis, Alawites ( ar, علوية ''Alawīyah''), or pejoratively Nusayris ( ar, نصيرية ''Nuṣayrīyah'') are an ethnoreligious group that lives primarily in Levant and follows Alawism, a sect of Islam that originated from Shia Isla ...
the Assad family had to be staunchly secular as fundamentalist Muslims hate the Alawites as apostates even more than they hate Christians.
On 28 June 1979 fifteen men were hanged in Damascus. They had been convicted of attempting to assassinate Rifaat al-Asaad.
Foreign relations
Numerous rumours tie Rifaat al-Assad to various foreign interests. Rifaat was close to King
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
Abdullah of Saudi Arabia
Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud ( ar, عبدالله بن عبدالعزيز آل سعود ''ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al ʿAzīz Āl Saʿūd'', Najdi Arabic pronunciation: ; 1 August 1924 – 23 January 2015) was King of Saudi Arabia, King and Pri ...
. Abdullah was married to a sister of Rifaat's wife, and Rifaat has on occasions—even after his public estrangement from the rulers in Syria—been invited to Saudi Arabia, with pictures of him and the royal family displayed in the state-controlled press.
After the Iraq War
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish)
, partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...
, there were press reports that he had started talks with US government representatives on helping to form a coalition with other anti-Assad groups to provide an alternative Syrian leadership, on the model of the Iraqi National Congress
The Iraqi National Congress (INC; Arabic language, Arabic: المؤتمر الوطني العراقي ''Al-Moutammar Al-Watani Al-'Iraqi'') is an Iraqi political party that was led by Ahmed Chalabi who died in 2015. It was formed as an umbrella I ...
. Rifaat has held a meeting with the former Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
i Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
Ayad Allawi
Ayad Allawi ( ar, إيَاد عَلَّاوِي ; born 31 May 1944) is an Iraqi politician. He served as the vice president of Iraq from 2014 to 2015 and 2016 to 2018. Previously he was interim prime minister of Iraq from 2004 to 2005 and the p ...
. Yossef Bodansky
Yossef Bodansky (May 1, 1954 – December 5, 2021) was an Israeli-American political scientist who served as Director of the Congressional Task Force on Terrorism and Unconventional Warfare of the US House of Representatives from 1988 to 2004. He ...
, the director of the US Congressional Task Force on Terrorism and Unconventional Warfare, has stated that Rifaat enjoys support from both the United States and Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
; he has been featured in the Saudi press as visiting the royal family in 2007. The Bashar government remains wary of his intentions and carefully monitors his activities.
Rifaat was mentioned by the influential American think tank Stratfor
Strategic Forecasting Inc., commonly known as Stratfor, is an American geopolitics publisher and consultancy founded in 1996. Stratfor's business model is to provide individual and enterprise subscriptions to Stratfor Worldview, its online public ...
as a possible suspect for the 2005 bombing that killed Lebanese ex-prime minister Rafiq Hariri
Rafic Bahaa El Deen Al Hariri ( ar, رفيق بهاء الدين الحريري; 1 November 1944 – 14 February 2005) was a Lebanese business tycoon and politician who served as the Prime Minister of Lebanon from 1992 to 1998 and again from ...
and the string of attacks that has struck Beirut
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
after the subsequent Syrian withdrawal. The goal would have been to destabilize the Syrian government. However, there has been no mention of Rifaat in the United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
s on the crime.
In 1983, Rifaat met with PLO leader Yasir Arafat
Mohammed Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf al-Qudwa al-Husseini (4 / 24 August 1929 – 11 November 2004), popularly known as Yasser Arafat ( , ; ar, محمد ياسر عبد الرحمن عبد الرؤوف عرفات القدوة الحسيني, Mu ...
in an attempt to appease growing tensions between Syria and Arafat's loyalists.
Ion Mihai Pacepa
Ion Mihai Pacepa (; 28 October 1928 – 14 February 2021) was a Romanian two-star general in the Securitate, the secret police of the Socialist Republic of Romania, who defected to the United States in July 1978 following President Jimmy Carter' ...
, a general in the security forces
Security forces are statutory organizations with internal security mandates. In the legal context of several nations, the term has variously denoted police and military units working in concert, or the role of military and paramilitary forces (s ...
of Communist Romania
The Socialist Republic of Romania ( ro, Republica Socialistă România, RSR) was a Marxism–Leninism, Marxist–Leninist One-party state, one-party socialist state that existed officially in Romania from 1947 to 1989. From 1947 to 1965, the s ...
who defected to the U.S. in 1978, claimed that Rifaat al-Assad was recruited by Romanian intelligence during the Cold War. In Pacepa's 1996 novel ''Red Horizons'', Romanian President Nicolae Ceaușescu
Nicolae Ceaușescu ( , ; – 25 December 1989) was a Romanian communist politician and dictator. He was the general secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 to 1989, and the second and last Communist leader of Romania. He was ...
is quoted as saying that Rifaat was "eating out of our hand" and went on to say: "Do I need a back channel for secret political communications? A way to inform Hafez secretly about my future discussions with Carter? Do I need to have somebody disappear in the West? Rifaat will take care of it. Now he can't do without my money." Pacepa later reasserted this allegation, describing Rifaat as "our well-paid agent" in a 2003 article in which he discussed the then Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi
Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi, . Due to the lack of standardization of transcribing written and regionally pronounced Arabic, Gaddafi's name has been romanized in various ways. A 1986 column by ''The Straight Dope'' lists 32 spellin ...
.
Release of David S. Dodge
Rifaat al-Assad contributed to the release of US politician and educator David S. Dodge
David Stuart Dodge (November 17, 1922 – January 20, 2009) was an American politician and university president. He was the Vice-President for Administration (1979–83), Acting President (1981–82) and President (1996–97) of the Ameri ...
on July 21, 1983.
On July 19, 1982, Dodge was abducted by pro-Iranian militiamen, members of the Islamic Amal Islamic Amal (in Arabic أمل الإسلامية) was a Lebanese Shia military movement based in Baalbek in the Beqaa Valley, Islamic Amal was led by Husayn Al-Musawi, who was also a leading figure in Hezbollah.
The movement got its start in June ...
in Beirut, led by Hussein al-Musawi
Husayn Al-Musawi (also Hussein Musawi) is a Lebanese who founded the now-dissolved pro-Iranian Islamist militia Islamic Amal in 1982. He was a Shia Islam in Lebanon, Shia from Baalbek.
Musawi was a "chemistry teacher turned militia commander" ...
. He was first held in Lebanon and then kept captive in Iran until his release one year later. Through contacts in the Iranian regime of Khomeini
Ruhollah Khomeini, Ayatollah Khomeini, Imam Khomeini ( , ; ; 17 May 1900 – 3 June 1989) was an Iranian political and religious leader who served as the first supreme leader of Iran from 1979 until his death in 1989. He was the founder of ...
, Rifaat was able to secure the release of Dodge and was publicly thanked by US president Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
.
Hama massacre
In February 1982, as commander of the Defense Companies
The Defense Companies ( ar, سرايا الدفاع; ) were a paramilitary force in Syria that were commanded by Rifaat al-Assad. Their task was to defend the Assad government, and Damascus, from internal and external attack. In 1984 the 55,000 st ...
, he allegedly commanded the forces that put down a Muslim Brotherhood
The Society of the Muslim Brothers ( ar, جماعة الإخوان المسلمين'' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan ...
revolt in the central city of Hama
, timezone = EET
, utc_offset = +2
, timezone_DST = EEST
, utc_offset_DST = +3
, postal_code_type =
, postal_code =
, ar ...
, by instructing his forces to shell
Shell may refer to:
Architecture and design
* Shell (structure), a thin structure
** Concrete shell, a thin shell of concrete, usually with no interior columns or exterior buttresses
** Thin-shell structure
Science Biology
* Seashell, a hard ou ...
the city with BM-21 Grad
The BM-21 "Grad" (russian: БМ-21 "Град", lit= hail) is a self-propelled 122 mm multiple rocket launcher designed in the Soviet Union. The system and the M-21OF rocket were first developed in the early 1960s, and saw their first comba ...
rockets, killing thousands of its inhabitants (reports range from between 5,000 and 40,000, the most common suggestion being around 15,000–20,000). This became known as the Hama Massacre
The Hama Massacre ( ar, مجزرة حماة), or Hama Uprising, occurred in February 1982 when the Syrian Arab Army and the Defense Companies, under orders of the country's president Hafez al-Assad, besieged the town of Hama for 27 days in ...
. A declassified document from the Defense Intelligence Agency
The Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) is an intelligence agency and combat support agency of the United States Department of Defense, specializing in defense and military intelligence.
A component of the Department of Defense (DoD) and the I ...
, however, estimates the total number of casualties to be approximately 2000. US journalist Thomas Friedman
Thomas Loren Friedman (; born July 20, 1953) is an American political commentator and author. He is a three-time Pulitzer Prize winner who is a weekly columnist for ''The New York Times''. He has written extensively on foreign affairs, global tr ...
claims in his book ''From Beirut to Jerusalem
''From Beirut to Jerusalem'' (1989) is a book by American journalist Thomas L. Friedman chronicling his days as a reporter in Beirut during the Lebanese Civil War and in Jerusalem through the first year of the Intifada.
Friedman wrote a 17-pa ...
'' that Rifaat later said that the total number of victims was 38,000. Rifaat, however, has repeatedly denied playing any role in the Hama massacre.[
Rifaat al-Assad clarified his version for the ]Hama massacre
The Hama Massacre ( ar, مجزرة حماة), or Hama Uprising, occurred in February 1982 when the Syrian Arab Army and the Defense Companies, under orders of the country's president Hafez al-Assad, besieged the town of Hama for 27 days in ...
during the conference in Paris to form the Syrian National Democratic Council on 15 November 2011. He was also implicated in the 1980 Tadmor Prison
Tadmor prison ( ar, سجن تدمر) was located in Palmyra (''Tadmor'' in Arabic) in the deserts of eastern Syria approximately 200 kilometers northeast of Damascus.
Tadmor prison was known for harsh conditions, extensive human rights abuse, to ...
massacre and acquired the sobriquet, the "butcher of Tadmor."
Rifaat al-Assad was also mentioned in a CIA
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...
report regarding drug smuggling
The illegal drug trade or drug trafficking is a global black market dedicated to the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of drug prohibition, prohibited drugs. Most jurisdictions prohibitionism, prohibit trade, except under license, ...
activities in Syria during the 1980s, along with other Syrian officials such as Ali Haydar, Mustafa Tlass
Mustafa Abdul Qadir Tlass ( ar, مُصْطَفَى عَبْد الْقَادِر طَلَاس, Musṭafā ʿAbd al-Qādir Ṭalās; 11 May 1932 – 27 June 2017) was a Syrian senior military officer and politician who was Syria's minister of defe ...
and Shafiq Fayadh
Shafiq al-Fayadh (1937 – 8 October 2015) ( ar, شفيق الفياض) was the commander of the Syrian 3rd Division and a close adviser to President Hafez al-Assad. He was also one of the members of his close circle.
Early life
Fayadh was bo ...
.
Attempted coup d'état
When Hafez al-Assad suffered from heart problems in late 1983, he established a six-member committee to run the country composed of Abdul Halim Khaddam
Abdul Halim Khaddam ( ; ar, عبد الحليم خدام; 15 September 1932 – 31 March 2020) was a Syrian politician who was Vice President of Syria and "High Commissioner" to Lebanon from 1984 to 2005. He was long known as a loyalist of Hafez ...
, Abdullah al-Ahmar
Abdullah Al-Ahmar ( ar, عبدالله الأحمر) (born 6 June 1936) is a Syrian politician and prominent member of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party.
Biography
Born at Al-Tall, Ahmar joined the Ba'ath Party in the 1950s and graduated from t ...
, Mustafa Tlass
Mustafa Abdul Qadir Tlass ( ar, مُصْطَفَى عَبْد الْقَادِر طَلَاس, Musṭafā ʿAbd al-Qādir Ṭalās; 11 May 1932 – 27 June 2017) was a Syrian senior military officer and politician who was Syria's minister of defe ...
, Mustafa al-Shihabi
Prince Mustafa Al-Shihabi ( ar, الأمير مصطفى الشهابي; 1893 – 1968) was a Syrian agronomist, politician, writer and the third elected director of Arab Academy of Damascus (1959–1968).
"Prince" title was only of a social backgr ...
, Abdul Rauf al-Kasm
Abdul Rauf al-Kasm ( ar, عبد الرؤوف الكسم, ʿAbd ar-Raʾūf al-Kasm) (born 1932) is a Syrian architect, academic and politician who served as prime minister of Syria during the 1980s.
Early life
Kasm was born in Damascus in 1932. Ab ...
and Zuhair Masharqa. Rifaat was not included, and the council consisted entirely of close Sunni
Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagr ...
Muslim loyalists to Hafez, who were mostly lightweights in the military-security establishment. This caused unease in the Alawi-dominated officer corps, and several high-ranking officers began rallying around Rifaat, while others remained loyal to Hafez's instructions.
In March 1984, Rifaat's troops, now numbering more than 55,000 with tanks, artillery, aircraft and helicopters, began asserting control over Damascus. A squadron of Rifaat's T-72
The T-72 is a family of Soviet/Russian main battle tanks that entered production in 1969. The T-72 was a development of the T-64, which was troubled by high costs and its reliance on immature developmental technology. About 25,000 T-72 tanks ha ...
tanks took position at the central roundabout of Kafr Sousa
Kafar Souseh ( ar, كَفْر سُوسَة, Kafr Sūsah) is a municipality and neighborhood of Damascus, Syria, located in the southwestern part of the capital.Sam Dagher, 'Assad Readies for U.S. Strike Despite Delay', ''The Wall Street Journal'' ...
and in Mount Qasioun
Mount Qasioun ( ar, جَبَل قَاسِيُون, transliterated as Jabal Qāsiyūn) is a mountain overlooking the city of Damascus, Syria. It has a range of restaurants, from which the whole city can be viewed. As the city has expanded over the ...
, overlooking the city. Rifaat's forces set up checkpoints and roadblocks, put up posters of him in State buildings, disarmed regular troops and arbitrarily arrested soldiers of the regular Army, occupied and commandeered Police Stations, Intelligence buildings, and State buildings; the Defense Companies
The Defense Companies ( ar, سرايا الدفاع; ) were a paramilitary force in Syria that were commanded by Rifaat al-Assad. Their task was to defend the Assad government, and Damascus, from internal and external attack. In 1984 the 55,000 st ...
rapidly outnumbered and took control over both the Special Forces
Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...
and the Republican Guard
A republican guard, sometimes called a national guard, is a state organization of a country (often a republic, hence the name ''Republican'') which typically serves to protect the head of state and the government, and thus is often synonymous wit ...
. Although Damascus was divided between two armies and seemed on the brink of war, Rifaat did not move. Informed that Rifaat was heading to Damascus, his brother Hafez al Assad
Hafez al-Assad ', , (, 6 October 1930 – 10 June 2000) was a Syrian statesman and military officer who served as President of Syria from taking power in 1971 until his death in 2000. He was also Prime Minister of Syria from 1970 to 197 ...
left his headquarters to meet him.
There was a clear division and tensions between forces loyal to Hafez, namely the 3rd Armoured Division (commanded by General Shafiq Fayadh
Shafiq al-Fayadh (1937 – 8 October 2015) ( ar, شفيق الفياض) was the commander of the Syrian 3rd Division and a close adviser to President Hafez al-Assad. He was also one of the members of his close circle.
Early life
Fayadh was bo ...
), the Republican Guard (commanded by General Adnan Makhlouf), the various Intelligence services (commanded by Generals Mohamed Khouli and Ali Duba
Ali Issa Ibrahim Duba ( ar, علي عيسى ابراهيم دوبا, born 1933), also known as ''Ali Douba'', is a former head of the Syrian military intelligence and was a close adviser to the Syrian president Hafez al-Assad. The military inte ...
), the National Police National Police may refer to the national police forces of several countries:
*Afghanistan: Afghan National Police
*Haiti: Haitian National Police
*Colombia: National Police of Colombia
*Cuba: Cuban National Police
*East Timor: National Police of ...
, and the Special Forces (commanded by General Ali Haidar); and the Defense Companies
The Defense Companies ( ar, سرايا الدفاع; ) were a paramilitary force in Syria that were commanded by Rifaat al-Assad. Their task was to defend the Assad government, and Damascus, from internal and external attack. In 1984 the 55,000 st ...
loyal to Rifaat. By the middle of 1984 Hafez had returned from his sick bed and assumed full control, at which point most officers rallied around him. Initially, it seemed that Rifaat was going to be put on trial and even faced a questioning that was broadcast on television. However, it is believed that Hafez's daughter Bushra actually saved her uncle by convincing her father that purging him would disgrace the family and might cause tensions not only in the Assad family, but with the Makhlouf family as well (since Rifaat is also married to a woman from that family, who are also the second most prevalent Alawite family, dominating the leadership of the security services behind the Assads).[Dossier: Bushra Assad (September-October 2006)](_blank)
In what at first seemed a compromise, Rifaat was made vice-president with responsibility for security affairs, but this proved a wholly nominal post. Command of the 'Defense Companies', which was trimmed down to an Armoured Division size, was transferred to another officer, and ultimately the entire unit was disbanded and absorbed into other units, like the 4th Mechanized Division, the Republican Guard, and the Airborne Special Forces Division. Rifaat was then sent to the Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
on "an open-ended working visit". His closest supporters and others who had failed to prove their loyalty to Hafez were purged from the army and Baath Party in the years that followed. Upon his departure, Rifaat acquired $300m of public money including a $100m Libyan loan. In 2015, he claimed that the money was a gift from Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia
Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud ( ar, عبدالله بن عبدالعزيز آل سعود ''ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al ʿAzīz Āl Saʿūd'', Najdi Arabic pronunciation: ; 1 August 1924 – 23 January 2015) was King of Saudi Arabia, King and Pri ...
back then.
During the 1990s
Although he returned for his mother's funeral in 1992, and for some time lived in Syria, Rifaat was thereafter confined to exile in France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
and Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
. He nominally retained the post of vice president until 8 February 1998, when he was stripped of this. He had retained a large business empire both in Syria and abroad, partly through his son Sumer. However, the 1999 crackdown, involving armed clashes in Lattakia
, coordinates =
, elevation_footnotes =
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, area_code = Country code: 963 City code: 41
, geocode ...
, destroyed much of his remaining network in Syria; large numbers of Rifaat's supporters were arrested. This was seen as tied to the issue of succession, with Rifaat having begun to position himself to succeed the ailing Hafez, who in his turn sought to eliminate all potential competition for his designated successor, his son Bashar al-Assad
Bashar Hafez al-Assad, ', Levantine pronunciation: ; (, born 11 September 1965) is a Syrian politician who is the 19th president of Syria, since 17 July 2000. In addition, he is the commander-in-chief of the Syrian Armed Forces and the ...
.
In France, Rifaat has loudly protested against the succession of Bashar to the post of president
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
, claiming that he himself embodies the "only constitutional legality" (as vice president, alleging his dismissal was unconstitutional). He has made threatening remarks about planning to return to Syria at a time of his choosing to assume "his responsibilities and fulfill the will of the people", and that while he will rule benevolently and democratically, he will do so with "the power of the people and the army" behind him.
Groups and organizations
Rifaat's son Sumer is the head of a minor pan-Arab TV channel, the Arab News Network
Arab News Network (ANN) was an Arab news channel broadcast on satellite from London.
History and profile
ANN was established in 1997. The channel is currently owned by Siwar al Assad, a first cousin of the President of Syria, Bashar al-Assad. The ...
(ANN), which functions as his father's political mouthpiece. He also claims to run a political party, of uncertain fortunes. Rifaat himself heads the United National Group (''al-tajammu' al-qawmi al-muwahhid''), which is another political party or alliance; it is known to have self-professed members among Rifaat's fellow exiles from Syria, but neither can be considered an active organization, even if they regularly release statements in favor of Rifaat's return to Syria and protesting to president Bashar al-Assad
Bashar Hafez al-Assad, ', Levantine pronunciation: ; (, born 11 September 1965) is a Syrian politician who is the 19th president of Syria, since 17 July 2000. In addition, he is the commander-in-chief of the Syrian Armed Forces and the ...
. Further, Rifaat founded the Arab Democratic Party in Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
in the early 1970s, a small Alawite
The Alawis, Alawites ( ar, علوية ''Alawīyah''), or pejoratively Nusayris ( ar, نصيرية ''Nuṣayrīyah'') are an ethnoreligious group that lives primarily in Levant and follows Alawism, a sect of Islam that originated from Shia Isl ...
sectarian/political group in Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
, which during the Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War ( ar, الحرب الأهلية اللبنانية, translit=Al-Ḥarb al-Ahliyyah al-Libnāniyyah) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 120,000 fatalities a ...
acted as an armed militia loyal to the Syrian government (through Rifaat). Ali Eid
Ali Eid (14 July 1940 – 25 December 2015) was a Lebanese politician. He was the leader of the Alawite Community. He founded the Arab Democratic Party in 1972 and until his death served as General Secretary of the Arab Democratic Party.
...
, the general secretary of the party today, supports the Syrian president Bashar Al-Assad.
Distinctions
Legal issues
Since 2014, Rifaat was accused of organised money laundering, aggravated tax fraud and embezzling Syrian funds to buy property worth at least €90m in France. In addition, Spanish authorities have seized his assets and bank accounts in a money laundering investigation since 2017.
In June 2020, a Paris court sentenced Rifaat to four years in prison; hence, his properties in Paris and London would be seized. In September 2022, France's highest court, the Cour de Cassation
A court of cassation is a high-instance court that exists in some judicial systems. Courts of cassation do not re-examine the facts of a case, they only interpret the relevant law. In this they are appellate courts of the highest instance. In th ...
, confirmed the four-year prison sentence.
Personal life
In 2010, Rifaat was living in Mayfair
Mayfair is an affluent area in the West End of London towards the eastern edge of Hyde Park, in the City of Westminster, between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane. It is one of the most expensive districts in the world. ...
, London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. he was living in Avenue Foch
Avenue Foch () is an avenue in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, France, named after World War I Marshal Ferdinand Foch in 1929. It is one of the most prestigious streets in Paris, and one of the most expensive addresses in the world, home to ...
, Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, while trying to sell off his real estate properties.
Rifaat married four times and his polygamous marriages as well as the marriages of his children have produced strong alliances and ties with prominent families and prestigious clans within Syria and the Arab world .[ He firstly married one of his cousins, Amirah, from al-Qurdahah. Then, he married Salma Makhlouf, a cousin of Hafez Assad's wife, Anisa. His third spouse is a young woman from the traditional Sunni Muslim establishment, Rajaa Bakrat. His fourth wife, Lina al-Khayyir, is from one of the most prominent ]Alawite
The Alawis, Alawites ( ar, علوية ''Alawīyah''), or pejoratively Nusayris ( ar, نصيرية ''Nuṣayrīyah'') are an ethnoreligious group that lives primarily in Levant and follows Alawism, a sect of Islam that originated from Shia Isl ...
families in Syria.[ The sister of one of his spouses was married to the late ]King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia
Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud ( ar, عبدالله بن عبدالعزيز آل سعود ''ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al ʿAzīz Āl Saʿūd'', Najdi Arabic pronunciation: ; 1 August 1924 – 23 January 2015) was King and Prime Minister of Saudi A ...
.
Rifaat's daughter Tumadir married Muin Nassif Kheir Beik, a member of the most powerful and prestigious Alawite family. His son-in-law is a relative of the Syrian activist and poet Kamal Kheir Beik. Tamadhin, another daughter, married a Makhlouf. Lama married Ala Fayyad, the son of Alawite General Shafiq Fayadh
Shafiq al-Fayadh (1937 – 8 October 2015) ( ar, شفيق الفياض) was the commander of the Syrian 3rd Division and a close adviser to President Hafez al-Assad. He was also one of the members of his close circle.
Early life
Fayadh was bo ...
. Rifaat's eldest son, Mudar, married Maya Haydar, the daughter of the ultra-rich entrepreneur Muhammad Haydar from the prominent al-Haddadin Alawite tribe.[ His youngest son, ]Ribal Al-Assad
Ribal al-Assad (born 4 June 1975) is a Syrian businessman and political activist. He is the Founder and Director of the Organisation for Democracy and Freedom in Syria (ODFS) and the Chairman and Founder of The Iman Foundation.
Early life and ...
, born 1975, is a businessman and political activist. He resided in Paris and has spoken frequently on French and international media on the Syrian crisis.
Return to Syria
In October 2021, Rifaat returned to Damascus at the age of 84. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad allowed his uncle, Rifaat al-Assad, to return to the country after decades in exile in order "to avoid imprisonment in France".
See also
*Al-Assad family
The al-Assad family ( ar, عَائِلَة الْأَسَد '), also known as the Assad dynasty, has ruled Syria since General Hafez al-Assad became President of Syria in 1971 under the Ba'ath Party. After his death, in June 2000, he was suc ...
*Presidency of Hafez al-Assad
Hafez al-Assad served as the President of Syria, President of Syria from 12 March 1971 until his death on 10 June 2000. He had been Prime Minister of Syria, leading a Hafez al-Assad Government, government for two years. He was succeeded by his ...
References
Bibliography
*
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Assad, Rifaat al-
1937 births
Rifaat al-Assad
Rifaat Ali al-Assad ( ar, رِفْعَتُ عَلِيِّ ٱلْأَسَدِ, Rifʿat al-ʾAsad; born 22 August 1937) is the younger brother of the late President of Syria, Hafez Assad, and Jamil al-Assad, and the uncle of the incumbent President ...
Damascus University alumni
Living people
Members of the Regional Command of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party – Syria Region
People of the Islamic uprising in Syria
People of the Syrian civil war
Syrian generals
Vice presidents of Syria
Homs Military Academy alumni
Grand Croix of the Légion d'honneur
Syrian money launderers
Syrian white-collar criminals