Rifaat al-Assad 'Avoids' French Prison

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's uncle Rifaat al-Assad (AP)
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's uncle Rifaat al-Assad (AP)
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Rifaat al-Assad 'Avoids' French Prison

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's uncle Rifaat al-Assad (AP)
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's uncle Rifaat al-Assad (AP)

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has allowed his uncle, Rifaat al-Assad, to return to the country “to avoid imprisonment in France”, after a few decades in exile.

Syrian Al-Watan newspaper reported on Friday that Rifaat al-Assad, 84, returned to Damascus after spending nearly 30 years in Europe as a dissident.

He arrived in Damascus on Thursday, nearly a month after a Paris appeals court upheld a four-year prison sentence issued against him last year for misappropriating public funds in Syria, laundering the spoils and building a vast property portfolio in France with illegal gains.

His confiscated French real estate assets are worth an estimated 90 million euros ($106 million).

“In order to prevent his imprisonment in France… President Assad rises above what Rifaat al-Assad has said and done and allows him to return to Syria,” al-Watan said.

Firas, Rifaat al-Assad’s son, said on his Facebook page that his father’s return to Syria came following a “deal between French and Russian intelligence and the Syrian regime.”



Cohen Meeting Escalates Protests in Western Libya Against Unity Government

Pro-Dbeibah government forces intervening to disperse protesters in central Tripoli (AFP)
Pro-Dbeibah government forces intervening to disperse protesters in central Tripoli (AFP)
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Cohen Meeting Escalates Protests in Western Libya Against Unity Government

Pro-Dbeibah government forces intervening to disperse protesters in central Tripoli (AFP)
Pro-Dbeibah government forces intervening to disperse protesters in central Tripoli (AFP)

Protests have intensified in western Libya against the interim Government of National Unity, led by Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, following the revelation of a meeting between former Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush and then-Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen in Rome last year.

In response to the demonstrations, Dbeibah accused foreign nations of being “involved in conspiracies to divide the country” and alleged that domestic factions were “fueling the protests” that erupted in multiple cities across western Libya against his government.

While Dbeibah refrained from naming these local factions during a speech delivered on Friday at the conclusion of the Entrepreneurs Forum and General Gathering of Youth Hostel Members in Misrata, he accused them of “manipulating young people to create discord and drag Libya backward.” He stressed that these groups “only seek war, destruction, and corruption.”

Speaking of “real conspiracies to divide Libya,” Dbeibah pledged that the country would remain unified. He addressed the youth, saying: “You are the future. We need you to step forward and defend your nation. We will not accept a return to the logic of force after the February 17 Revolution, and we will not allow it.”

In eastern Libya, Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, leader of the Libyan National Army, and Speaker of the House of Representatives Aguila Saleh, refrained from commenting on Dbeibah’s statements.

Saleh, however, emphasized that the solution to Libya’s political gridlock lies in holding “free and fair elections, with all sides committed to respecting the results.”

He pointed out that the House of Representatives had enacted electoral laws to facilitate this process and called for the formation of a unified government to steer Libya toward stability.

In remarks broadcast by his media office on Friday, Saleh asserted that he had “taken no actions aimed at excluding or marginalizing any party.” He pointed to the importance of national reconciliation for achieving peace and security and denied aligning with any external or international forces.

Saleh further urged support for the National Reconciliation Law as a vital step toward resolving disputes, stressing “the significance of the peaceful transfer of power.”

On Friday evening, protests erupted in Misrata, Dbeibah’s hometown, coinciding with his visit. Demonstrators expressed their rejection of what they perceived as normalization efforts with Israel and demanded Dbeibah’s resignation. In a statement, some Misrata residents condemned the meetings between his government and Israeli officials as a “grave betrayal.”