Assad’s tycoon cousin pleads for help on Facebook after regime seizes assets, in sign of growing rift

Rami Makhlouf, one of the richest men in Syria, breaks ranks and begs Syrian president for help in a Facebook video in which he denies he evaded tax

Rami Makhlouf had been known for years as President Assad's main financial ally (Getty)

An apparent spat in the once tight-knit family of the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, deepened overnight on Thursday when his tycoon cousin Rami Makhlouf made a direct appeal for help on Facebook over an order to seize his assets and impose fines.

Mr Makhlouf, who is Mr Assad’s maternal cousin and one of the wealthiest men in Syria, published a video on the social media platform to defend his businesses against accusations of tax evasion, breaking the usual silence of the president's closest circles.

In December, Syrian officials took the extraordinary step of seizing Mr Makhlouf’s assets and charging him millions of dollars in fines after he was accused of importing smuggled goods into the country.

It was part of a so-called anti-corruption investigation that hit several other figures in Syria’s private sector. Many believed that the probe was part of a move to force Syria’s richest to give back wealth in order to save the country from bankruptcy amid mounting pressure from long-term ally Russia.

Mr Makhlouf, who is a major shareholder in state mobile company Syriatel as well as an owner of luxury hotels and other businesses, had been known for years as Mr Assad’s main financial ally.

He has been repeatedly sanctioned by the US and the European Union since 2008 because of his financing of the regime. Before the civil war that began in 2011, he was believed to control more than half of the country’s economy.

Mr Makhlouf's sons, Mohammad and Ali, have gained notoriety for documenting their extravagant lifestyles – including expensive cars, luxury-resort holidays and water sports – on their popular Instagram accounts.

However, Mr Makhlouf appears to have taken the unusual measure of speaking out publicly by posting his woes on his Facebook page.

Directly appealing to the president in a 15-minute video, Mr Makhlouf claimed he had been ordered to pay up to 130bn Syrian pounds (£202m) in fines for tax fraud, a figure that he said could result in the “collapse” of his businesses.

He claimed his company paid 12bn Syrian pounds in tax last year and shares the profits equally with the state.

In a repeated plea, he vowed not to embarrass the Syrian president or be “a burden” but maintained that he had received threats.

“I beg you … we are not tax evading,” he said.

It is not known what first sparked the rift in the Assad family; however, there has been growing speculation that Russia, fed up with the protracted and expensive war in Syria, has increased pressure on the Syrian president.

Russia has been a key backer of Syrian government forces throughout the country’s civil war, but there have been a number of recent articles in Russian media criticising the Syrian president and endemic corruption in the country.

Rami Makhlouf appeals directly to President Assad for help (screen shot from Rami Makhlouf's Facebook page) (screen shot from Mr Makhlouf's Facebook page)

Bloomberg reported this week that Russia has grown increasingly impatient with Assad, amid the oil-price collapse and the coronavirus pandemic, and is keen to extricate itself from the war.

The news agency said that an article briefly appeared on a news website linked to Kremlin insiders, attacking Mr Assad as corrupt.

Other articles and commentary have levelled criticism against the government in Damascus for being inflexible in negotiations with the opposition, Bloomberg said.