Nadene Goldfoot
Following the September 11 attacks and during the early stages of the US-led war on terror, "Syria had emerged as one of the CIA's most effective intelligence allies in the fight against al-Qaeda," with "the quality and quantity of information from Syria [having] exceeded the Agency's expectations." Syria closely cooperated with the CIA's detention and interrogation program of people deemed "illegal enemy combatants."
Syrian prisons were a major site of extraordinary rendition by the CIA of alleged al-Qaeda members where they were tortured by Syrian interrogators on behalf of the CIA. According to a 2013 report by the Open Society Foundations, Syria was one of the "most common destinations for rendered suspects" under the CIA's program.
Yes, Bashar al-Assad's regime in Syria was widely known for arbitrarily detaining, imprisoning, and disappearing men, women, and children with extreme ease, particularly following the 2011 uprising. The regime utilized a vast, centralized intelligence network to track and detain perceived opponents, resulting in an estimated 157,000 to 1.3 million cases of arbitrary detention between 2011 and late 2024.
The CIA conducted extensive covert operations in Syria starting around 2013, primarily under "Operation Timber Sycamore," to arm, fund, and train moderate rebel groups fighting the Bashar al-Assad regime. Based in Turkey and Jordan, the CIA trained thousands of fighters to use anti-tank/aircraft weapons before the program was terminated in 2017.
A covert CIA program created under the Obama administration to train and arm moderate Syrian rebels to put pressure on the Assad regime will soon end, The Washington Post first reported Wednesday. Hari Sreenivasan talks to Faysal Itani of the Atlantic Council about how this policy change will affect Syria’s future and the country's relationship with the U.S.
The President, Bashar al Assad, was an Alawite. Alawites differ from Sunni Muslims by adhering to a secretive, syncretic faith that deifies Imam Ali, includes reincarnation, and rejects traditional Sunni pillars like Ramadan fasting, mosque attendance, and Hajj pilgrimage. They blend Islamic, Gnostic, and Christian traditions—such as celebrating Christmas and using wine in rituals—resulting in many Sunni scholars viewing the minority sect as heretical.
- Hafez al-Assad (born 2001)a boy,: Named after his grandfather, he is the eldest son. Known for his interest in mathematics and technology, he has been a participant in international mathematical Olympiads, although his performance was noted as poor compared to peers. In early 2025, he was studying in Moscow and confirmed the family's flight from Damascus, as reported in The New Arab.
Asma, his wife, is a British-born Syrian economist who served as the first lady of Syria from 2000 to 2024 as the wife of Bashar al-Assad. She became first lady when she married al-Assad on 13 December 2000, shortly after he became president.
Asma Fawaz Akhras graduated from King's College London in 1996 with a bachelor's degree in computer science and French literature. She had a career in investment banking and was planning to begin an MBA at Harvard University when she married Bashar al-Assad in December 2000. She resigned from her job in investment banking following the wedding and remained in Syria, where their three children were born. As first lady, she played a major role in supporting government organisations involved with social and economic development as part of a reform initiative halted due to the outbreak of the Syrian civil war.
Along with her husband, Assad was considered to be one of the "main economic players" in Syria, controlling large parts of Syrian business sectors, banking, telecommunications, real estate and maritime industries. As a result of the Syrian civil war, Assad was subject to economic sanctions relating to high-level Syrian government officials, making it illegal in the European Union (EU) to provide her with material and financial assistance, for her to obtain certain products, and curtailing her ability to travel within the EU. In the UK, she was a part of a preliminary inquiry within the War Crimes unit of the Metropolitan Police with allegations involving the "systematic approach to the torture and murder of civilians, including with the use of chemical weapons" and incitement of terrorist acts.
Assad's father, Hafez al-Assad, was born to an impoverished rural family of Alawite background and rose through the Ba'ath Party ranks to take control of the Syrian branch of the Party in the Corrective Revolution, culminating in his rise to the Syrian presidency.
Alawites in Syria, the minority sect of Bashar al-Assad and his father Hafez, represented roughly 12% of the population (or around 1.7 million individuals). They formed the backbone of the military and political elite, with significant numbers residing in coastal areas like Latakia and Tartous, according to BBC. Political Dominance: Since 1970, Alawites filled top army and intelligence positions.
- Civil War Impact: During the war (2011–2024), many served as loyalists, and by late 2024, the community was significantly impacted, with roughly a third of men between 20 and 50 lost in combat, . Post-Assad Era: With the regime's collapse in 2024, the minority faced an uncertain future, with some residents in ancestral areas fearing retribution from a Sunni-led government.
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