Sosyal Medya

Politics

Assad Family: A Legacy of Sectarian Power and Drug Trafficking

Dr. Ebu Yazen İmamoğlu

The Assad family is undoubtedly modern Syria's most powerful political dynasty. Known for its absolutism, the family has come to be known for its repression and brutality, particularly towards Muslim populations. Who exactly is the Assad family, and what has shaped their rule? The origins of this family are closely tied to the Bâtinite sect in Syria, a relationship that has evolved. In this article, we will explore the history of Bâtinism in Syria and examine how the Assad family’s connection to its teachings and practices has influenced their approach to power.

What is Batinism?

Batinism is a belief system associated with Shiism that encompasses deep and esoteric teachings. This doctrine has historically been linked to groups such as Ubaydi Batinism, the Fatimids, and the Hashshāshīs, particularly during the 4th/10th century. When the Fatimids occupied Egypt in this period, Batinism became a central element of their rule, not only serving as a religious movement but also as a source of political power. The teachings of Bâtinism are often overshadowed by its association with political assassinations and secret espionage activities.

Origin of the Assad Family    

The Assad family’s origins are tied to the Alawite faith in Syria. The Alawites are a Shiite sect predominantly found in north-western Syria, particularly in Hama, Latakia, and Tartous provinces. This sect combines the core beliefs of Islam with its own rituals and esoteric teachings. Historical sources suggest that the Assad family’s roots trace back to the 8th/14th century, influenced by the Ilkhanid Sultan Mahmud Kazan Khan. During his military campaigns in Syria, Kazan Khan settled Persian-origin Batinite-Shiite groups in the coastal regions. Over time, these communities Arabized and became the foundation of today’s Alawite community. The struggle against this community was also influenced by figures like Ibn Taymiyya, who warned that it posed a threat to Islam. Despite his efforts, he died in prison before completing the fight.

Returning to the 20th century, we see the patriarch of the Assad family, Suleiman al-Wahish, playing a role as a spy during the French mandate in Syria after World War I. According to allegations, al-Wahish, who worked on behalf of colonial France, declared himself a deity, which ultimately led to his execution by the Syrian Independence Government. During the French mandate period, the Nusayri-Shiite communities of Persian origin, to which the Assad family belongs, underwent a transformation. The tag “Nusayri” was changed to “Alawite” by the French authorities to help facilitate their integration into Sunni society in Syria. Moreover, the family would adopt “al-Assad” instead of “al-Wahish” so as to distance it from negative connotations and better integrate into the broader Syrian society.

The Road to the Syrian Administration

In the new Syria, the Assad family, reflecting their Batinite roots, maintained an insidious character and managed to dominate despite being a sectarian minority. Between 1960 and 1967, with support from the United States, Hafez al-Assad quickly ascended through the ranks of the military and public administration.

In 1963, the Baath Party took power in Damascus through a military coup. During the French mandate over Syria, the Alawites were heavily recruited into the Troupes Speciales du Levant. Thus, despite constituting only a percentage of the Syrian population, many young officers were from the sect. Following the coup, the Baathist Military Committee undertook a significant restructuring of the army, replacing 90% of the officer corps with Alawites. This transformation turned the Syrian armed forces into a sectarian power, setting the foundation for the Assad family’s control.

Hafez al-Assad quickly rose through the ranks, starting as an air force commander and later becoming the minister of defence. The family consolidated power as his brother, Rifaat al-Assad, also held high-ranking positions. In his own words, he sought to create an “ideological army.”

The Baathist coup in 1963 marked the rise of the Baathist system, which controlled Syria’s social, economic, political, educational, and religious spheres through brutal repression and state terrorism. This group, of Alawite-Shiite origin, leveraged the rising tide of Arab nationalism at the time to dominate the government. In 1966, Alawite officers initiated the first “rectification movement” with a coup within the military. The leadership included figures like Muhammad Umran, Salah Jadid, Suleiman Haddad, Hafez al-Assad, Rashid Qutayni, Muhammad al-Sufi, and Ziyad al-Hariri. In a symbolic move, a weak Sunni, Noureddin al-Atasi, was appointed head of state.

The turning point in Hafez al-Assad’s career came during the Six-Day War with Israel in 1967. The Syrian armed forces suffered a significant defeat, losing the Golan Heights to Israel. There are strong allegations that Assad may have deliberately abandoned this region, triggering serious discontent within the Baath Party. Many senior members demanded his resignation, and there were even attempts to remove him from the Regional Command, the party's highest decision-making body. However, Hafez al-Assad managed to eliminate all his rivals through skilful manipulation of the growing opposition and the support of his brother, Rifaat al-Assad. By November 1970, he had firmly consolidated his power as the undisputed leader of Syria.

The Assad Family’s Syria

Upon coming to power, Hafez al-Assad established a security apparatus heavily influenced by family ties and dominated by Alawites. Key positions in the armed forces were assigned to close relatives based on loyalty rather than merit. For example, his brother, Rifaat Assad, controlled the elite Fighting Units, while his brother-in-law, Adnan Makhlouf, served as Assad’s second-in-command as Commander of the Presidential Guard.

This kinship-based approach to appointments and promotions favoured family connections over competence, creating an Alawite elite built on sectarian loyalty. The resulting exclusion of Syria’s Sunni majority from key roles contributed to deepening sectarian unrest. In response, the Assad regime has increasingly aligned itself with Shiite-majority Iran.

The Modern Batinites: Assad Family

Just as Hafiz Assad consolidated power for himself and his family—a legacy that would extend for 54 years—the Assad regime draws striking parallels to the historical Batinites, the ideological predecessors of the Nusayris, or Alawites, to which the Assad family belongs. The influence of Batinism thought shaped not only religious but also cultural and political structures. Hafiz Assad’s regime integrated elements of Batinism and Alawite beliefs into the state apparatus. Like the historical Batinites, whose beliefs were shrouded in secrecy, the Assad family's religious claims remain ambiguous. While they profess Islam, their practices often suggest otherwise.

Historically, the Batinites were notorious for their ruthless killings of Muslims and covert alliances with the Crusaders. The Ubaydi Batinite Fatimids, for instance, viewed the Crusaders as potential allies in their struggles against the Abbasids, Sunni Seljuks, Turks and Ayyubids. Similarly, the Assad family has overseen some of the most brutal massacres of Muslims in modern history. The infamous 1982 Hama massacre, commanded by Major General Rifaat al-Assad under Hafiz Assad’s presidency, resulted in the deaths of up to 40,000 Sunni civilians. Decades later, Hafiz’s son, Bashar al-Assad, would follow in his father’s footsteps, presiding over the killing of countless Sunnis during Syria’s civil war. His actions have led to the greatest displacement crisis of modern times.

The parallels don’t end with violence. Just as the historical Batinites were associated with the use of hashish, which gave rise to the term “Assassins,” the Assad family has built a reputation for drug production and trafficking. The stimulant drug captagon has become a primary source of income for the regime. In 2022, the European Union sanctioned several of Bashar al-Assad’s cousins, Wasim Badi al-Assad, Samer Kamal al-Assad, and Mudar Rifaat al-Assad, for their involvement in captagon trafficking. According to the U.S. Treasury Department, Samer Kamal al-Assad operates a factory in Latakia that produces 84 million pills annually. Thus, the drug production hub discovered in Damascus last week and linked to Maher al-Assad, the brother of ousted regime leader Bashar al-Assad, did not come as a surprise. Drug is a family business, and their predecessors are in the Batinites.

Disturbingly, most of the Captagon, the drug produced by the Assad family, enters the Gulf countries, especially Saudi Arabia! The use of this drug to poison the young generations of the Islamic geography reveals yet the treachery of the regime.

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