Relatives of Bashar Assad arrested while trying to fly out of Lebanon: officials – National
The wife and daughter of one of the cousins of ousted Syrian president Bashar Assad were arrested Friday at Beirut airport, where they tried to fly with suspected fake passports, Lebanese security officials said. Assad’s uncle left the day before.
Rasha Khazem, the wife of Duraid Assad – the son of former Syrian vice president Rifaat Assad, Bashar Assad’s uncle – and their daughter, Shams, were smuggled into Lebanon illegally and were trying to fly to Egypt when they were arrested, according to the report. to five Lebanese officials familiar with the case. They were arrested by the General Security of Lebanon. Rifaat had flown out the day before with his original passport and was not stopped, officials said.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to discuss the case publicly.
Swiss prosecutors in March charged Rifaat with war crimes and crimes against humanity for allegedly ordering killings and torture more than four decades ago.
Rifaat Assad, the brother of Bashar Assad’s father, Hafez Assad, the former governor of Syria, led a military unit that attacked the city of Hama and killed thousands, earning him the nickname “Butcher of Hama.”
Get the latest country news
For news that affects Canada and the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you as they happen.
Earlier this year, Rifaat Assad was indicted in Switzerland for war crimes and crimes against humanity in connection with Hama.
Tens of thousands of Syrians are believed to have illegally entered Lebanon on the eve of Assad’s fall earlier this month, as rebels swept into Damascus.
Lebanese security and judicial officials said more than 20 members of the former Syrian Army’s notorious 4th Division, military intelligence officers and other associates of Assad’s security forces were initially arrested in Lebanon. Some of them were arrested while trying to sell their weapons.
Lebanon’s public prosecution office also received an Interpol notice for the arrest of Jamil al-Hassan, the former director of Syrian intelligence under Assad. The Prime Minister of Lebanon, Najib Mikati, said earlier Reuters that Lebanon will cooperate with Interpol’s request to arrest al-Hassan.
© 2024 The Canadian Press
