The Assads are originally fromQardaha,Latakia Governorate. They belong to theAlawiteKalbiyya tribe.[2] In 1927,Ali Sulayman changed his last name fromal-Wahsh, Arabic for 'the savage', toal-Assad, 'the lion', possibly in connection with his social standing as a local mediator and his political activities. All members of the extended Assad family stem from Ali Sulayman and his second wife, Naissa, who came from a village in theSyrian Coastal Mountains.[3]
During his early reign in the1970s, Hafez al-Assad created patronage networks ofBa'ath party elites loyal to his family. Members of the Assad family established control over vast swathes of the Syrian economy, andcorruption became endemic in the public and private sectors.[4] After Hafez's death, family connections continued to be important in Syrian politics. Several close family members of Hafez also held vital positions in the government since his rise to power, an arrangement which existed until the fall of the Assad regime.[5][6] The Syrianbureaucracy and business community were also dominated by members of the Assad family and individuals affiliated with them.[7][8]
Hafez al-Assad built his regime into a bureaucracy that was marked by acult of personality. Images, portraits, quotes and praises of Assad are displayed everywhere from schools to public markets and government offices. Hafez was referred to as the "Immortal Leader" and theal-Muqaddas ("Sanctified One") in officialAssadist ideology. Hafez re-organised Syrian society in militaristic lines and persistently invoked conspiratorial rhetoric on the dangers of foreign-backed plots abetted byfifth columnists and promoted thearmed forces as a central aspect of public life. After Hafez al-Assad's death, his son and successor Bashar al-Assad inherited the existing personality cult, with the party hailing him as the "Young Leader" and "Hope of the People". Drawing influence from theveneration of the Kim dynasty inNorth Korea'shereditary leadership model led byKim Il Sung, official propaganda in Syria ascribed divine features to the Assad family and reveres the Assad patriarchs as the founding fathers of modern Syria.[9][10][11]
The Assad family originates from Ali Sulayman al-Wahsh, Hafez al-Assad's father, who was born in 1875 and lived in the village ofQardaha in the coastal Syrian mountains. The locals reportedly nicknamed him "Wahsh", Arabic for "wild beast", because he was physically strong and a good fighter. Al-Wahsh remained the family name until the 1920s, when it was changed to al-Assad, Arabic for "lion".[14][15] Because of Sulayman's reported strength and marksmanship, he was respected in his village. At the outbreak ofWorld War I, the Ottoman governor of theAleppo Vilayet sent troops to the area to collect taxes and round up recruits. The troops were reportedly fought off by Sulayman and his friends who were armed only with sabres and old muskets.[16] Because Sulayman was respected, he was a local mediator between quarreling families. He was also one of the local chieftains who were the de facto rulers of the area. The chieftains from the powerful families would provide protection to their neighbours and in return they gained loyalty and respect.[17] He lived until 1963, long enough to see his son's rise to power. He married twice and over three decades had eleven children. His first wife Sa'ada was from the district of Haffeh. They had three sons and two daughters. His second wife was Na'isa, twenty years younger than him. She was the daughter of Uthman Abbud from the village ofAl-Qutailibiyah, a dozen kilometres further up the mountain. They had a daughter and five sons. Hafez was born on 6 October 1930 and was the fourth child.[18]
Al-Assad family is affiliated with theAlawite sect, a syncretic sect with links to earlyShi'ism. Since coming to power in 1970, the Assad family traditionally used sectarian loyalty from the Alawite sect as a vital component to legitimize their dynastic rule. Many Sunni loyalists have been assigned to crucial posts in the bureaucracy, security forces,military, judiciary, etc., in-order to consolidate Assad family's grip on power.[19]
In no other country in recent memory ... notMao's China, norTito'sYugoslavia, has the intensity of thepersonality cult reached such extremes. Asad's image, speaking, smiling, listening, benevolent or stern, solemn or reflective, is everywhere. Sometimes there are half a dozen pictures of him in a row. His face envelops telephone poles and trucks, churches and mosques. His is the visage a Syrian sees when he opens his newspaper.
A square inAleppo displaying the statue and portrait of Hafez al-Assad (2001)
During the 1950s, SyrianAlawites started becoming influential in theSyrian Armed Forces andBa'ath party. Led by Alawite military officers, likeSalah Jadid, Ba'athist factions staged a series of coups during the 1960s and built up aone-party state. The party cemented its total control over the state and society by purging civilian elites, pursued an aggressivepropaganda policy of "state-nationalist indoctrination" and established patronage networks based on sectarian lines to mobilise support.[22] Following the1970 coup d'etat that ousted his rivalSalah Jadid;Hafez al-Assad developed aStalinist-stylepersonality cult around him; which depicted him as thefather figure of Syrian nation. After Hafez's death, the personality cult was extended to his son,Bashar al-Assad. Monuments, pictures, statues, symbols and billboards of both the leaders extensively pervade Syrian society, designed to consolidate the notion of "Assad's Syria". Observers view the state propaganda efforts as a strategy for securing the compliance of the masses and identifyingSyrian nationhood with the Assad dynasty.[23][24][25][26][27]
On the other hand, exaggerations of the propaganda and ever-deepening importance attached to upholding the personality cult around the Assad patriarchs have resulted in the simultaneous de-emphasis on the Syrian identity itself; due to the duplication of reality. In addition to criminalising any and all critiques of the regime; the modes of conveying messages between the state and civil society are restricted strictly within bounds of what is officially acceptable. The state further banned private political opinions critical of the regime and encourages citizens to report relatives and friends who exhibit undesirable attitudes. The policies ofeconomic liberalization implemented during the 2000s worsened the corruption; since the chief grantees of the outcomes were businessmen and relatives close to the Assad family; such asRami Makhlouf.[28][29][30]
Hafez and Bashar Assads
Unlike other Arab dictatorships, this feature of theBa'ath regime and total centralisation of power in the hands of the Assad patriarchs had enabled it to instillapoliticism amongst its citizens; where the ritualisation of state slogans and symbolism had led to de facto compliance. As a result, there are far fewer avenues of free political activism for ordinarySyrians as compared to other Arab states. Until recently, political activism was shunned by many people; instead preferring the stability offered by the regime. The rise ofinternet andsatellite channels and proliferation of civil society groups and independent political activists during the 2000s increasingly began to challenge state monopoly on information, which have led to rising political dissidence amongst the younger generations.[30][31][28][29] Describing the hardships to raise the political consciousness of Syrian citizens by contrasting their situation with other Arab protestors, Caroline, a Syrian Christian and civic activist imprisoned by regime during the 2011–12Arab Spring protests, states:
"Before therevolution in Egypt, people were allowed to gather, had political parties; people were exposed to political life. In Syria, we were away from politics. We were raised in Syria and our parents used to tell us that we shouldn't talk with anyone about our religion or about politics"[32]
Since Hafiz al-Assad'sseizure of power in 1970; state propaganda has promoted a new national discourse based on unifyingSyrians under "a single imaginedBa'athist identity" andAssadism.[33] Fervently loyalist paramilitaries known as theShabiha (tr. ghosts) deify the Assad dynasty through slogans such asThere is no God except Bashar! (Arabic: لا إله الا بشار) and pursuepsychological warfare against non-conformist populations.
In December 2024, the Assad family's regime collapsed when the rebels entered and capturedDamascus, the Syrian capital, during the2024 Syrian opposition offensives. Assad and his family left Syria for theRussian capital,Moscow, to seek asylum.[34]
Bashar al-Assad (born 1965), was thePresident of Syria until 8 December 2024. Before Bassel's death he was anophthalmologist. He is married toAsma al-Assad (born 1975). She was the First Lady of Syria and took a prominent public role until 8 December 2024. Before being married, she was an investment banker. They have three children.[6] The couple were also regarded as the "main economic players" in Syria and controlled large parts of Syrianbusiness sectors, banking,telecommunications,real estate, andmaritime industries.[7]
Majd al-Assad (1966–2009), was an electrical engineer with a reported history of severe mental problems.[42] He was married to Ru'a Ayyoub (born 1976) and had no children.[43] Majd died inDamascus on 12 December 2009 after a long unspecified chronic illness.[44][45][46]
Maher al-Assad (born 1967), is the former commander of theRepublican Guard, which are also known as the Presidential Guard, and the army's elite Fourth Armored Division, which together with Syria's secret police form the core of the country's security forces.[47] He is also a member of theBa'ath Party central command and is said to have an aggressive and uncontrollable personality. He is married and has two daughters.[44][48] He is reported to have been severely disabled in a2012 bombing in Damascus during the Syrian civil war.[49][50] He reportedly shotAssef Shawkat in the stomach in October 1999, during an argument. Maher is also known by many to be the most ruthless in the Al-Assad family.[51] He has been linked to "overseeing a captagon factory in al-Basa" and production centres in theQalamoun Mountains.[52] He is sanctioned by the US government.[52]
Jamil al-Assad (1932–2004), parliamentarian and commander of a minor militia. Politically marginalized years before his death.[6] Children:
Mundhir al-Assad (born 1961), was arrested in 2005 at theBeirut Airport while entering Lebanon.[6] He was reported to have been involved in arms smuggling to theIraqi insurgents.[53] In 2011, the EU placed sanctions on him for being involved with theShabbiha militia in the repression of protestors during the Syrian Civil War.[48][54]
Fawwaz al-Assad (1962–2015), was the first realShabiha and gave the meaning known today to the word Shabiha and the concept of Tashbeeh that is to act like a thug.[55] He had sanctions placed on him in 2011 by the EU for being involved with the Shabbiha militia in the repression of protestors during the Syrian Civil War.[53][54]
One daughter is married to Yarob Kanaan, whose father isGhazi Kanaan (1942–2005), who in 2005 during his term as interior minister presumably killed himself. The Kanaans come from the Kalabiyya tribe.[56]
Rifaat al-Assad (born 1937). Formerly a powerful security chief and commander of theDefense Companies, who was responsible for the1982 Hama massacre. After attempting a coup d'état in 1987, he went into exile inFrance and also lived inLondon.[57] He is married with four wives: Amira 'Aziz al-Assad (died 2019), a cousin.[56] Sana' Ismail Makhluf (died 2021), from the family of Hafez's wife.[56] Rajaa Bakrat, from a wealthy Sunni Damascene family.[56] Lina al-Khayer, sister of Hessa bint Tarad al-Shaalan, wife of the late Saudi KingAbdullah bin Abdulaziz (1924–2015).[56] Rifaat has a number of children from these marriages, including:
Ribal al-Assad (born 1975), has lived abroad since he was nine years old; currently he lives in theUnited States. In an interview in 2010, he denied that his father was involved in the massacre of Hama or that his family's branch was connected toAbdul Halim Khaddam (1932–2020) orGhazi Kanaan.[57]
Somar al-Assad, supports his father actively in his opposition to Bashar.[56]
Mudar al-Assad, is married to May Haydar, daughter of the Syrian multimillionaire Muhammad Haydar.[59]
Tumadhir, is married to Mu'ein Nasif Kheirbek also from the Kalabiyya tribe and related toMohammed Nasif Kheirbek (1937–2015), who is indirectly related by marriage and blood to Abd al-Halim Khaddam,Rafic Hariri (1944–2005) and the influential Homsal-Atassi family.[56]
Firas al-Assad, accused his cousin, President Bashar, of killing more than 100,000 Alawites and more than half a million Syrians in order to stay in power.[60]
Sister of Hafez al-Assad married into the Shalish family. The family through paternal cousin General Dhu al Himma al-Shalish maintains a significant level of influence in the Bashar al-Assad government. The Shalishes are mainly active in the automobile and construction sectors.
GeneralDhu al-Himma Shalish (1951–2022), a cousin of Bashar al-Assad, was the head of presidential security and was part of the inner circle of leadership of the Bashar al-Assad government.[61][62] He had sanctions placed on him by the US government for supplying weapons to Saddam Hussein and his government.[61][63] On 24 June 2011, the EU sanctioned him for being involved in violence against demonstrators during the Syrian Civil War.[64]
Asef Isa Shalish, nephew of Dhu al-Himma, is the manager of SES, a company that was involved in the weapons trade with Iraq and Iran.[44][58][65]
Riyad Shalish, a cousin of Bashar Assad and the former director of the governmental construction organization the Military Housing Establishment, which during the 1990s he managed to transform into his own company. He made a fortune on construction and contracting deals in Syria involving large scale projects financed by other Arab states. On 24 June 2011, the EU sanctioned him for providing funding to the regime to repress protesters of the Syrian Civil War.[64][66]
Ahmed al-Assad (1910–1975), was an older half-brother of Hafez from Ali's first wife Sa'ada.[67]
Anwar al-Assad,
Hilal al-Assad (died 2014), was the president of the Syrian Arabian Horse Association. Hilal was killed on 22 March 2014, during the2014 Latakia offensive in the battle for a border crossing atKessab with Turkey in the north of Latakia.[68]
Suleiman al-Assad, Hilal's son, was arrested in August 2015 after allegedly murdering an off-duty colonel in a 'road rage' incident in Latakia.[69] He was sentenced to 20 years in prison but in late 2020 was released after four years.[70] In December 2024, video of a man being lynched and hung from a crane after thefall of the Assad regime went viral with the claim that it depicted Suleiman, but this was false.[71]
Hael al-Assad, was the head of the Military Police of the army's4th Armoured Division, whose official commander is Maher al-Assad. He is also the director of the prison in which Maher al-Assad keeps his personal prisoners outside of state jurisdiction.[67]
Haroun al-Assad, is an elected municipal official of the village of Qardaha.[67]
Daad al-Assad, is married to General Zouheir al-Assad, who was born in 1958 and is a distant cousin. Zouheir al-Assad commanded the 90th Regiment, a unit of some 10,000 men, charged with protecting the capital.[67]
Karam Al Assad, led a group ofShabiha. He and his group of shabiha led an assault against the peaceful protests during the "night of destiny". The assault ended in two deaths and dozens injured.[67]
Isma'il al-Assad (1913–?) was an older half-brother of Hafez from Ali's first wife Sa'ada.
Tawfiq al-Assad,
Muhammad al-Assad (died 2015), another leader of the "Struggle companies". He was killed in a dispute with a powerful person over control in the al-Qerdaha area of Latakia province, on 14 March 2015.[72]
Hussein al-Assad, son of Muhammad. He took over the criminal network of his father and reorganized it into a paramilitary unit, theLions of Hussein.[73]
Ibrahim al-Assad, was an older half-brother of Hafez al-Assad from Ali Sulayman's first wife Sa'ada. He was married to Umm Anwar who took over the smuggling business of her son Malek.[74]
Malek al-Assad was the first known smuggler in the Assad family.[74]
About Hafez's siblings who died early—Bayat, Bahijat and an unknown sister—almost nothing is publicly known.[3]
The Makhloufs belong to theAlawi Haddad tribe,[56][75] both Hafez and Rifaat are related through marriage to the Makhloufs. The Makhlouf family rose from humble beginnings to become thefinancial advisor to Hafez al-Assad after the former President married Makhlouf's sister. The family headed by Mohammad Makhlouf has established a vast financial empire in the telecommunication, retail, banking, power generation, and oil and gas sectors. The net worth of the family was estimated in 2010 to be at least five billion dollars.[44][76]
Mohammed Makhlouf (1932–2020),[77] made a fortune, both through management of state companies and in the private sector.[78]
Rami Makhlouf (born 1969), is a wealthy businessman and the main owner ofSyriaTel.[44] According to theFinancial Times he is thought to control as much as 60% of the economy through his web of business interests that include telecommunications, oil and gas, construction, banking, airlines and retail, and he is widely seen as the business arm of the Assad government.[48][79] He is regarded as Syria's wealthiest man – worth approximately 5 billion dollars.[80] In 2020, intense dispute arose between Makhlouf andBashar al-Assad over the issue of backtaxes; which severely damaged Assad's reputation amongst Alawite loyalists.[81]
Iyad Makhlouf (born 1973), twin of Ihab Makhlouf, is aGeneral Security Directorate officer. The EU, US,[85] and UK[86] sanctioned him for being involved in violence against the civilian population during the Syrian Civil War.[54]
Ihab Makhlouf (1973–2024), twin of Iyad Makhlouf, is former Vice-Chairman ofSyriaTel[87] and caretaker for Rami Makhlouf's US company. The EU sanctioned him for providing funding to the Assad government and allowing violence against demonstrators in the Syrian Civil War.[54] He is believed to be in charge of the sniper units that are being used to shoot at protestors in the uprising.[88] He was killed in his car on 8 December 2024, after theFall of the Assad regime.
Fatima Makhlouf, sister of Anisa Makhlouf.
Atef Najib (born 1960), is the former head ofPolitical Security Directorate in Deraa.[89] The EU sanctioned him for being involved in violence against demonstrators in the Syrian civil war.[48]
General Adnan Makhlouf, first cousin of Anisa, former commander of theRepublican Guard.[90]
General Talal Makhlouf, cousin of Anisa, former commander of theRepublican Guard.[91]
Namir al-Assad, reportedly established the Shabiha with Rifaat al-Assad in the 1980s and controlled the organized smuggling networks, anchored in Latakia's port.[92]
Numeir al-Assad, second degree cousin of Hafez's children, led the Shabiha inLatakia.[6] He was imprisoned following a heist in 2005 atSednaya Prison and remained there until December 2024. He was later recaptured in October 2025.[96][97]
Nizar al-Assad, is a cousin of Bashar Al-Assad. He was the head of the Nizar Oilfield Supplies company. He was sanctioned by the EU for being very close to key government officials and for financing Shabiha in the region of Latakia.[64]
Fawaz al-Assad, nephew of Hafez, leader of Shabiha[98]
Mundhir al-Assad, nephew of Hafez, leader of Shabiha[98]
Samer al-Assad, son of Kamal and grandson of Ismael who was a half-brother of Hafez al-Assad, runs one of severalCaptagon factories inAl-Bassah.[99]
Duraid Assad, husband of Rasha Khazem and the father of Shams Assad. Rasha and Shams Assad were smuggled into Lebanon after the fall of the Assad Regime and were arrested in the Beirut international airport because of owning a fake passport.[100]
Wassim al-Assad, cousin of Bashar al-Assad and a former militia leader. Arrested in June 2025 by Syrian authorities for drug trafficking and war crimes after years of leading pro-regime militias and operating in the Captagon trade.[101][102][103]
Ammar al-Assad, cousin of Bashar al-Assad. Known for early involvement in smuggling and local criminal networks in Latakia, reportedly under the protection of his uncle Jamil al-Assad.[104]
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