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Syrian Security Forces Arrest 12 Army Officers over Makhlouf Ties

Syrian businessman Rami Makhlouf. (AFP file photo)
Syrian businessman Rami Makhlouf. (AFP file photo)
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Syrian Security Forces Arrest 12 Army Officers over Makhlouf Ties

Syrian businessman Rami Makhlouf. (AFP file photo)
Syrian businessman Rami Makhlouf. (AFP file photo)

Syrian security services have arrested 12 officers and regime forces accused of having ties to business tycoon Rami Makhlouf, Syrian President Bashar Assad’s cousin. This took place while another eight that have been arrested under the same charges were released.

“The large-scale campaign by the regime’s intelligence service is still underway, since it has been launched with the purpose of arresting several regime officers and soldiers, as well as employees working for Rami Makhlouf,” the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said in one of its reports.

According to Observatory statistics, regime security services have arrested at least 51 regime officers and soldiers since the start of the campaign in mid-April.

They were arrested for “dealing with foreign bodies and embezzling state funds”.

Reliable sources have informed the Observatory that regime intelligence arrested nine ex-fighters of the “Al-Bostan Association”. This brings to 85 the number of managers, employees and ex-fighters arrested for their connection to Makhlouf’s businesses. They were arrested in Damascus, Aleppo, Homs, Latakia and Tartus.

Earlier this week, Makhlouf revealed that he had set up a web of offshore front companies to help Assad evade Western sanctions.

In a social media post blasting the government for investigating his business empire, he said authorities are expelling all investors save for warlords who have made their fortune exploiting the nine-year war in Syria.

One of Syria's richest and most powerful businessmen, Makhlouf said security forces were now targeting Cham Holding, the centerpiece of a vast business portfolio much of which has been seized by the cash-strapped government.

The former Assad loyalist said security forces were pursuing contracts signed by the company on suspicion he had embezzled funds abroad.

"They fabricated our embezzlement of funds and transferring it to our accounts abroad ... Stop these unjust claims and read well the contracts," Makhlouf said in a Facebook post.

"These companies' role and aim is to circumvent [Western] sanctions on Cham Holding."

Makhlouf, who has helped bankroll the ruling family and its supporters, brought in 70 investors nearly 15 years ago to set up Cham Holding. It is the largest Syrian company by capital and has a monopoly on key property developments.

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Israel Wages ‘Psychological War’ on Residents of Southern Lebanon

Lebanese inspect damage from an Israeli strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs. AP
Lebanese inspect damage from an Israeli strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs. AP
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Israel Wages ‘Psychological War’ on Residents of Southern Lebanon

Lebanese inspect damage from an Israeli strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs. AP
Lebanese inspect damage from an Israeli strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs. AP

Residents of southern Lebanon say they are living under the constant shadow of an Israeli “psychological war,” as drones hover overhead, sound bombs explode near villages, and airstrikes fuel a growing climate of fear across the border region.

While Israeli air raids and ground incursions have escalated in recent weeks, locals in towns such as Mays al-Jabal, Hula, and Kfar Kila report an additional, subtler kind of assault: one that aims not to destroy buildings, but to break spirits.

“Drones don’t leave our skies,” Mohammad, a resident of Bint Jbeil, told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“Explosions near homes, constant buzzing, and open threats on Israeli media – it’s designed to keep people afraid.”

The psychological toll has been mounting. Sound bombs were dropped in Hula on Wednesday, while Israeli forces crossed the border near the village of Tufa, setting fire to a truck clearing rubble.

In the town of Mansouri, a man was injured by an Israeli drone strike and hospitalized in nearby Tyre. In a separate incident, a man in his thirties was wounded by unexploded ordnance.

Israel’s tactics, residents say, aim to paralyze daily life and force displacement.

“This is more than a military campaign. It’s a war on the mind,” said former Mays al-Jabal mayor Abdel Moneim Shuqair, noting that only around 500 residents have returned to the town out of a pre-escalation population of 7,000.

Movement in the south has become increasingly perilous. Roads like the one linking Maroun al-Ras to Bint Jbeil are now considered too risky to travel.

“People avoid them because they’re completely exposed to Israeli surveillance. Any moment, a car could be targeted,” Shuqair told Asharq Al-Awsat.

On that note, Mohammed added that Israel doesn’t just want locals to leave; it wants to break their will to return.

In Kfar Kila, resident Mona Awadah described fleeing her home after it was targeted. Her husband survived the attack, but their home was no longer safe.

“We were one of the first families to return after the truce,” she said. “We put up a prefabricated home on our farmland, but even that was targeted. It’s as if they’re saying: you’re not safe anywhere – not even on your own land.”

Locals say the absence of a comprehensive state-led reconstruction plan is exacerbating their sense of abandonment. Efforts to rebuild homes or install mobile housing units have reportedly drawn further Israeli strikes. Some families have taken shelter in public schools, sleeping on makeshift bedding.

“There’s no alternative for us but this country and this army,” said Shuqair. “We need a clear stance from the state and a serious plan for a safe and dignified return,” he added.

As fear becomes routine, some residents warn of an even more dangerous development – adaptation. “The biggest danger is that people are starting to get used to the emptiness,” said Mohammad. “That’s what the occupation wants – for us to forget our land.”