On May 26, Syria will witness presidential elections that will lead to an almost certain victory for President Bashar al-Assad for a third term, in a vote that Washington and the Syrian opposition describe as a farce aimed at perpetuating his authoritarian rule, according to Reuters news agency.
The Assad family has ruled Syria for five decades with the help of the security services and the army, and the country's affairs are dominated by the Alawite minority.
This year, 10 years have passed since the outbreak of the civil war, which was sparked when the security services violently suppressed demonstrations calling for reforms and to reduce the power of the security services.
Why did the Syrian war last 10 years?
United Nations: Tens of thousands of Syrians are missing
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The Syrian conflict attracted global and regional powers and resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands, the displacement of millions and widespread destruction that set Syria back decades, but it is nearing its end after Assad regained control of most of the country with the support of his Russian and Iranian allies.
What is the story of the Assad family with the authority?
In his book "Modern History of Syria.. Hafez al-Assad's Era 1971 - 2000", Syrian researcher Hashem Othman said that Hafez al-Assad was born in the city of Qardaha in Lattakia Governorate in Syria on October 6, 1930, and the title al-Assad was given by Christian Archbishop Arslanios Haddad to His grandfather Suleiman, who protected Christians from persecution and sheltered them during World War I, and when he saw his body, he said excitedly: "This is a lion."
The late president entered the College of Aviation and graduated as a war pilot, and was discharged from service after the separation between Egypt and Syria in 1961, and when the Baath Party seized power on March 8, 1963, he was returned to service so that his star began to rise and be raised in less than two years from the rank of major To the rank of pilot general, he was appointed commander of the air force and was elected a member of the Revolutionary Command Council, according to what was stated in the book.
He was also elected as a member of the regional leadership of the Baath Party and took the position of Minister of Defense before becoming head of state in the wake of what was known as the "Corrective Movement".
On November 16, 1970, al-Assad led the so-called "Corrective Movement", in which the Ba'athist leader and de facto ruler of Syria, Salah Jadid, President Nureddin al-Atassi and a number of Ba'athist leaders were arrested.
After that, the head of the Teachers Syndicate, Ahmed Al-Khatib, was appointed head of state, and Hafez Al-Assad became prime minister and became general secretary of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party.
On February 22, 1971, dual rule was abolished and al-Assad assumed the duties of head of state, and on March 12, a popular referendum confirmed al-Assad's position as head of state. Since then, the Assad family has ruled Syria, ending the stage of coups under which Syria had been living since independence in 1946.
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Hafez al-Assad married Anisa Makhlouf, and they had a daughter and 4 sons: Bushra, Basil, Bashar, Majd and Maher.
It was Basel, Hafez's eldest son, who was groomed to take over, but his death in a car accident in 1994 pushed his brother, an ophthalmologist, Bashar, to the fore. Bashar al-Assad came to power in 2000 after the death of his father, which was opposed by his uncle, Rifaat al-Assad.
Rifaat the lion
No one outside the ruling family really knows what is happening behind the closed doors of the regime. Bashar's father made Syria a closed state after he took power in it.
Anisa Makhlouf comes from an Alawite family richer than the Assad family, who rose from poverty after joining the army. Hafez was a very suspicious person, and he was intent on seizing power. He surrounded himself with men of his Alawite sect, but his family was at the heart of the regime he established.
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Hafez's brother, Rifaat, was his right-hand man, and he took on major tasks, such as crushing the Muslim Brotherhood's rebellion in Hama in 1982. Rifaat commanded the Defense Brigades, made up mainly of Alawites, crushing the group, destroying most of Hama's neighborhoods and killing ten Twenty thousand of its inhabitants.
But a year later, when Hafez was in hospital with heart problems, Rifaat al-Assad sent his tanks into the streets of Damascus in an attempt to seize power. But the attempt was unsuccessful because the army and special forces stood by Assad. Rifaat's fate was not imprisonment or murder, but exile, carrying tens of millions of dollars with him.
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It was not surprising that Rifaat al-Assad was the first to oppose Bashar's succession to his father. A spokesman for Rifaat said at the time that what is happening in Syria is a farce and an unconstitutional drama, and that it is a real violation of the law and the constitution. Rifaat was stripped of his position as Vice President in 1998.
Rifaat lived in exile in Europe a luxurious life, moving between France and southern Spain, relying on the huge funds provided by a commercial empire in European capitals.
There were reports in October 1999 of clashes at facilities in a port near the city of Latakia that authorities said Rifaat was using for illegal commercial activities.
Bashar al-Assad
The image presented by the Syrian media about Bashar al-Assad in 2000 reflected the characteristics of a young man who aspires to enter his country into the age of the Internet and the fight against corruption.
Bashar bears many of the features of his father, with his blue eyes, smiling face and short mustache, but unlike the late president, he represents a generation of Arab leaders who were brought up in a Western culture. He is fluent in English and French and is steadily following the latest technology vocabulary.
In describing Bashar al-Assad's personality, the Syrian News Agency said at the time that he had a great ability to be firm and decisive in his decisions and behavior.
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Bashar al-Assad, who studied mainly ophthalmology, has a special interest in information technology, and the Syrian official agency said that he headed the Syrian Scientific Society for Informatics and supervised its annual seminars and exhibitions, and encouraged young people to learn about computer science and modern technology.
Bashar al-Assad was born in September 1965 in Damascus, and received his primary and preparatory studies at the Freedom Institute in the Syrian capital, then joined the Faculty of Medicine at Damascus University and graduated as a general physician.
It seems that his professional ambition at that time overshadowed the idea of joining the institutions of the authority, as he specialized in ophthalmology at Tishreen Military Hospital and practiced there after his graduation, and in 1992 he went to Britain to continue his studies in this specialty and then returned to Syria two years later.
Perhaps it was the 1994 murder of his older brother, Basil, who was being groomed by his father for the presidency, as the radical shift that propelled Bashar into the spotlight to replace his brother.
In 1994, he joined the Syrian army with the rank of captain, and in 1995 he was promoted to the rank of major, then to the rank of lieutenant-colonel in 1997, and then to the rank of colonel-staff in 1999.
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It is noteworthy that the Syrian president has been married since 2001 to Asma al-Akhras, who was born in Britain, and they have two sons, Hafez (after his grandfather's name) and Karim and a daughter named Zain.
Divide and conquer
Neil Quilliam of Britain's Chatham House wrote an article for the BBC in 2015 saying that Hafez al-Assad is the architect of modern Syria. to seize power in 1970.
Hafez al-Assad established a regime based on the rule of divide and rule to preserve his position, as he made the authority identifiable in his person to the extent that he was the only one who kept the state coherent, and thus he would leave to his successor weak state and government institutions.
When Bashar came to power, he was initially forced to work with the clique that surrounded his father, many of whom presided over key state institutions such as the security services and the army for decades. But in order to assert his independence, he slowly pushed them to the sidelines, preferring his group of close advisers.
In most cases, key government ministries and agencies have been under the authority of the trusted allies of Assad the father since the 1970s.
Although these institutions were weak, they served as important instruments of patronage and provided an essential link between the presidency and its support base. In this way, state institutions created a strong sense of loyalty among their employees and beneficiaries, and thus became strong pillars of the state.
By removing his father's peers, Bashar imposed his own elite on society and the state.
Hafez al-Assad rose to power with a generation of leaders, most of whom came from rural areas and maintained close links with their rural environments. As for Bashar's close circle, they are mainly members of the elite, a generation that grew up in cities and lacks any connection to their parents' environments, and they depend on their networks of influence in the circles of power.
The extent of Bashar's hold on power was the subject of much debate until the start of the Syrian uprising in March 2011. There were questions about whether Bashar was under the influence of powerful "barons" and family members including his sister Bushra, her late husband Assef Shawkat, and his brother Maher.
BBC Documentary "The Lion's House: A Dangerous Ruling Family" (in English)
Many believed that Bashar was a reformist by nature and had the intention of inaugurating a phase of conquest in Syria, but he was constrained by his father's clique.
It was a superficial understanding of Bashar, who worked carefully with a number of Western journalists, academics and consultants to help him appear simple, sympathetic and thoughtful.
Several years ago, the BBC broadcast a documentary entitled "The Assad House: A Dangerous Ruling Family".
"How does a moderate ophthalmologist end up killing thousands of people?" asked the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph, speaking about the documentary, which was broadcast on several episodes, produced and directed by Nick Green.
The newspaper pointed out that this film represents an amazing history of a tyrannical family that preferred wealth at the expense of the welfare of the Syrian people, and that there are many similarities between the film and the American drama and crime series The Sopranos and Al Corleone, which revolve around mafia leaders in the United States, with the huge difference in the number of victims.
Ramy Makhlouf
The story of Rifaat al-Assad's defection was not the only one within the family. In May 2020, billionaire businessman Rami Makhlouf, a member of the ruling family in Syria, appealed to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to intervene to save his companies from collapse.
In a rare appearance, Makhlouf, who is Bashar al-Assad's cousin, posted a video clip on his Facebook account in which he denied accusations of tax evasion, saying that the government was asking him to pay $100 million in back taxes on the telecommunications company owned by "Syriatel", which is one of only two. of its kind in Syria.
The video published by Makhlouf sheds light on the close circle of President Assad, amid reports indicating that Makhlouf fell into a dispute with the president, and because of that dispute, he was stripped of most of his property.
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And Jeremy Bowen wrote in the BBC saying that Rami Makhlouf appeared in the video staring into the lens, and speaking in a calm voice, as if he was whispering what he was saying, and his beard seemed whiter, unlike the pomp that he was in the pictures, when he was enjoying wealth and power, and counting his billions, not as Not only from the regime's wealthy, but also from the wealthy of his family.
Makhlouf did not lose the luster of wealth. He is a man who is difficult to become poor. This is rare in Syria, which the United Nations says is 80 percent of its population living below the poverty line, and there are about 10 million people who do not have enough food, and half of them have lost their homes because of the war.
Makhlouf lives in a suburb of Damascus, a favorite of Syria's wealthy, on the road to Beirut.
Rami appeared in an expensive Italian-made jacket, and was sitting in a corner of his house in front of a pile of olive trees arranged in an artistic way, in preparation for winter.
If what Rami says in the video is true, and that he donated a third of his wealth, then this means the demise of his power.
Rami was famous for charging a commission for every important deal in Syria, which is why some called him "Mr. Five percent".
Rami and the President are about the same age, in their early fifties, and they have been childhood friends. Rami is known to be a strong supporter of the regime, and he does not speak publicly about his family, politics, or his business.
In an interview with the New York Times in 2011, as the war in Syria began to intensify, he said that the country's ruling elite, Assad and Makhlouf, and some close to the two families, would fight to the end: "They should know that when we suffer, we will not suffer alone."
That threat turned out to be real, except for his other promise that they would stay united. The videos he posted show that this is no longer available.
Makhlouf posted on social media a prayer for God to end the injustice he suffers, and broadcast three video clips that include criticism of the regime. These videos could lead most Syrians to prison, if they were found in their possession.
Makhlouf said: "Mr. President: The security services have begun to infringe on people's freedom. These are your people, and your supporters."
Companies operate in the fields of oil, construction and trade, but the main source of his wealth is the mobile phone networks in Syria.
His companies are accused of owing the state $180 million in back taxes. This is not a large amount for a man of this wealth. Even his son, Mohammed, who lives in Dubai, is described as a billionaire, as his online appearance suggests.
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After his sons deleted the pictures of the lavish life from Instagram, Makhlouf published a post on Facebook claiming to make an offer to pay what he owed.
But it seems that his cousin Bashar is not interested in the relatively small amounts of tax arrears, but rather on Rami's empire in the field of commerce and business.
Syria's coffers have become empty after nearly a decade of war that devastated most of its parts.
In another video, Makhlouf apologized to his employees, after the security services arrested 28 of them.
He said, "Judicial matters are still pending without progress, especially with regard to those arrested by unknown persons."
In fact, they are not unknown to Makhlouf. His brother Hafez headed the General Intelligence Directorate, the most important agency in dealing with internal threats to the regime. He knows exactly what the security and intelligence men can do.
Makhlouf's fall theories
There are several theories circulating about the fall of Makhlouf. Some say he's getting too big and rich. Signs of pressure appeared on him when he was forced to close the Al-Bustan Charitable Society, which ran a militia estimated to number about 20,000 men.
The theory focuses on the president's wife, Asma al-Assad, who grew up in London and is considered by the Syrians to be one of the centers of power in the regime, and who runs a number of large charitable organizations.
Another theory centers on relations with the Kremlin. Russian media linked to President Vladimir Putin, the most important ally and protector of President Assad, have criticized corruption in Syria. It was Putin's decision to intervene in Syria in 2015 that ensured the Assad regime's victory in the war.
The theory is that Assad does not want to lose Putin's protection, and Rami Makhlouf is only an obvious victim because he is seen by many Syrians as a symbol of corruption, which is rooted throughout the country.
The eyes of businessmen close to Putin must focus on the contracts for the reconstruction of Syria, in which Rami Makhlouf may see that he has the lion's share.
And the British newspaper, The Times, published a report in 2019, in which it noted the existence of a rift within the Syrian ruling family due to a dispute between the president and his billionaire cousin.
She pointed out that for years, Makhlouf was considered the cornerstone of the Assad regime, the father and then the son, who privatized some of the assets of the economy in Syria, which allowed Makhlouf to build his financial empire.
According to the same report, Rami controlled 60 percent of the Syrian economy before the 2011 uprising.
The rise of fathers
The Reuters news agency also said that the financial arrangements between the Al-Assad and Makhlouf families began with the rise of the fathers. When Assad seized power in a military coup in 1970, he turned to Mohammed, his brother-in-law Anisa and Rami's father, to manage money from state-controlled industries and contract commissions that would support his rule. Muhammad, known as Abu Rami, had financial skills that Hafez lacked.
“Makhlouf was generally better educated and trained, so he could help with finances, something the Assad family was not very good at and did not receive education in this field,” said Joshua Lands, a Syria specialist and head of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Oklahoma. Makhlouf's family was better in dealing with the people of Damascus and Aleppo, who dominate the Syrian economy."
Makhlouf the father reaped great returns from this relationship. In the seventies of the last century, he was appointed head of the General Tobacco Corporation, which had a monopoly on the manufacture and trade of cigarettes and tobacco in Syria. A decade later, he expanded his business interests as head of the state-owned Real Estate Bank and played the role of broker in government contracts.
The children grew up together and were close to each other. One of Makhlouf's ex-partners said that when he was Rameshaba he used to go to the lion's house and would open the refrigerator like any other family member.
The Times said that the reason for the dispute between Assad and Makhlouf is the latter's refusal to pay the debts of the civil war in the country, and that Assad is trying to use Makhlouf's money to fund militias to fight with him in attempts to establish control over all Syrian cities and towns. Syrian sources estimate Makhlouf's money abroad at about $10 billion.