Rifaat al-Assad: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 15:23, 8 October 2005

Revision as of 15:23, 8 October 2005

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[[Image:Rifaat al-Assad.jpg]]'''Rifaat al-Assad'''is the younger brother of the former President of [[Syria]], [[Hafiz al-Assad]], and the uncle of the current President [[Bashar al-Assad]], all of whom come from the minority [[Alawite]] Muslim sect, which controls Syrian political life.

[[Image:Rifaat al-Assad.jpg]]

He played a key role in his brother's take over of executive power in 1970, and ran the elite security forces and the 'Defence Company' (Saraya al-Difah), responsible for internal security. He had a pivotol role throughout the 1970s and many saw him as the likely succesor to Hafiz up until 1984.