Makhlouf Says ‘Miracle Solution’ Underway for Syria Crisis

Rami Makhlouf, Asharq Al-Awsat
Rami Makhlouf, Asharq Al-Awsat
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Makhlouf Says ‘Miracle Solution’ Underway for Syria Crisis

Rami Makhlouf, Asharq Al-Awsat
Rami Makhlouf, Asharq Al-Awsat

Rami Makhlouf, Syrian business tycoon and maternal cousin of President Bashar al-Assad, predicted on Thursday that a “miracle” settlement will soon lift Syria out of the chaos and devastation brought about by over a decade of civil war.

“The important thing today is to inform the Syrians of this message. The solution would be a miracle. How? What is the method? This is something I will keep to myself,” said Makhlouf in a video he posted on Facebook.

Branding his statements as “good news for Syrians,” Makhlouf said the solution will be “comprehensive, reached in the next few months and miraculous in the sense that all Syrians will support it.”

He voiced hope that the solution he is heralding is “real and would spell the end of suffering for Syrians.”

Makhlouf, in this video, avoided mentioning Assad and war profiteers, both of whom were at the center of the businessman’s more critical videos and posts on social media.

Makhlouf pled for the regime, namely his cousin, intervening to stop war-exploiting racketeers who raided one of his offices, stole important documents and used fraud and forgery to seize some of his assets.

Moreover, Makhlouf’s mobile network carrier, Syriatel, was placed under judicial custody in 2020.

The decision regarding Syriatel, one of only two carriers in the country, was taken to "guarantee the rights of the public treasury and the rights of the shareholders in the company", Syria’s administrative court wrote on Facebook.

Makhlouf called the asset seizure illegal and an attempt by the government to take the company away from him.

A court then placed a travel ban on Makhlouf, pending settlement of the dispute.



Israeli Army Plans to Remain in Gaza Until End of 2025

Palestinians search the rubble of a house targeted by an Israeli army strike in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Thursday, May 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinians search the rubble of a house targeted by an Israeli army strike in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Thursday, May 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
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Israeli Army Plans to Remain in Gaza Until End of 2025

Palestinians search the rubble of a house targeted by an Israeli army strike in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Thursday, May 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinians search the rubble of a house targeted by an Israeli army strike in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Thursday, May 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Despite the debate in Tel Aviv between the political leadership and the military establishment over the objective of the fighting in Gaza, sources on Friday confirmed that the two sides agreed on the principle of “continuing and even escalating the war” in the Palestinian enclave.

The political leadership says that defeating Hamas is Israel's main goal while the military leadership says it is a mistake to prioritize fighting over the release of the hostages.

A military official in Tel Aviv said that during high-level security consultations with senior ministers and military officials held early on Friday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved a plan for the army to remain in the Gaza Strip until at least the end of the year.

The plan will become official on Sunday, following a vote by the government cabinet, the official said.

He noted that the Army is expected to call up thousands of reservists as it readies for a significant expansion of its ongoing military operation in Gaza.

Netanyahu also approved a reserve call-up and the movement of troops between the West Bank, Syria and Lebanon, the official added.

He said that calling up reservists was being carried out solely out of “practical and operational interests,” amid mounting letters signed by more than 200,000 veterans calling for a hostage deal with Hamas.

The military official said that the Israeli army’s most important mission remains returning the 59 hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza, roughly 24 of whom are presumed alive, while collapsing the group’s rule over the Strip was secondary, contrary to the position of Netanyahu, who said on Thursday that “victory” over the group, not the return of the hostages, was the supreme objective of the war in Gaza.

“The supreme mission that the Israeli army is dealing with is our moral duty to return the hostages. The second mission is defeating Hamas. We are working to advance both goals, with the return of the hostages being at the top (of the list of priorities),” the military official said.

Following the multi-hour security meeting with Netanyahu, an Israeli official told the Ynet news site, “As long as Hamas does not release our hostages, we will significantly deepen our military action. That is what will happen unless Hamas agrees at the last moment to a deal and releases the hostages.”

Last Monday, Hebrew media outlets said Israel rejected a five-year truce proposal with Hamas in exchange for the release of all remaining hostages.

Observers said Netanyahu is now more than ever determined to continue the war. The PM is convinced that a ceasefire will open the door to an internal war aimed at overthrowing his government.

The only obstacle to Netanyahu’s plan remains the position of President Donald Trump’s administration which is pushing for a Gaza ceasefire deal ahead of the President’s mid-May Middle East tour.

Political sources in Tel Aviv said Netanyahu aims to influence Trump's thinking and convince him to endorse his plans for continuing the war in Gaza.