The beginning of the end for Rami Makhlouf started when his aunt, Anisa Makhlouf, the mother of Bashar Al-Assad, passed away. This resulted in the leadership in the Republican Palace shifting from Anisa Makhlouf to Asma Al-Assad, who seems to be working on restructuring the Syrian economy.
Mohammad Makhlouf has reached a level of influence that no other official had reached in the era of Hafez al-Assad, because he could communicate with Hafez at any time and on any occasion. He also used to bribe state officials with exorbitant gifts.
The current rift between Bashar al-Assad and his wife on the one hand, and Rami Makhlouf on the other hand, raises questions about the regime’s ability to liquidate Makhlouf…
The Syrian regime has a mysterious history, during the rule of the Assads, a hidden history, giving way to a narrative that refers everything in Syria to the regime that was established or controlled by Hafez Al-Assad…
These are the facts of an incident narrated to me by a former employee of one of the companies owned by Rami Makhlouf; the maternal cousin of President Bashar al-Assad. The former employee refused to reveal his identity for personal reasons.
Makhlouf’s debut on social media shows that the official outreach channels with the regime, including al-Assad himself and the actual decision-makers have closed, or at best no longer reachable…
Buildups and conflicts of interest between Asma Al-Assad and Rami Makhlouf, have led the latter to break the silence and send a direct warning to the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad.