Despite his disagreement with Assad ... Why did Rami Makhlouf remain in Syria?

The British "Middle East Eye" website said that the Syrian businessman Rami Makhlouf is still residing in Syria despite his public criticism of President Bashar al-Assad, which raised questions about the significance of this.

He explained that Makhlouf, the cousin of President Assad, is currently residing in one of the villas he owns, and he did not escape from the country despite his dispute with Assad, and despite previous reports that he fled to the UAE, describing this as a rare offer of opposition by a key individual in the country's ruling family.

And the website stated in an exclusive report that Makhlouf controls a network of companies specialized in oil, construction, banking services, airlines and telecommunications, from which he made a fortune with billions of dollars.

A threat of financial claims
The website indicated that Makhlouf published a video clip on his Facebook page on April 30, in which he complains to the Syrian government that threatened him with demanding payment of taxes and requests for licensing communications worth tens of millions of dollars, reminding Assad of his financial support and charitable work During the nine-year civil war in Syria.

Consequently, the Syrian authorities have arrested a number of senior employees of Makhlouf, the telecom giant, which is owned by Makhlouf, and which is on the throne of the mobile phone market in the country.

In a second video, Makhlouf criticized the "inhuman way" in which the Syrian authorities arrested his company's employees.

A source pointed out that the issue is more complicated than just an episode "of internal conflict in the circles close to Assad."

Part of a plot?
The source stated that he believed Makhlouf might be part of a conspiracy in which he was used either by one of Damascus's allies to increase pressure on the government to accept a political settlement to end the war in the country, or by Damascus to counter this pressure.

He added that he knew Makhlouf personally, and he did not dare challenge the Syrian state, which raises the question: Why does he do that? Especially since the amount in dispute is valued at about $ 200 million, which is "trivial" for Rami, whose wealth is billions of dollars.

The same source indicated that children who had been abandoned possessing property that includes villas, cars and jet planes in the Emirates, the price of which alone is "approximately the amount that the Syrian state requires him to pay. And his sons Muhammad and Ali have become symbols of the extravagance associated with the family."

Last April, Instagram declined to show footage of Muhammad Makhlouf celebrating his birthday in self-isolation as part of the characteristics of the Corona virus pandemic.

Money only
Earlier this month, the Syrian Ministry of Communications issued a statement requesting "Syriatel" and the communications company "MTN Syria" to pay a license fee of 233.8 billion liras (334 million dollars) for the period between 2015 and 2019. The ministry added that the Syrian tax authorities are pursuing a separate case against telecom companies because of tax evasion.

In a related context, political analyst familiar with the dynamics of the Syrian government, Kamal Allam, told Middle East Eye that Makhlouf could be arrested if he continues to criticize, noting that if he continues to criticize them publicly on social media and does not pay money, they will arrest him and they can. Seizing his property, which will strip him of his influence.

Makhlouf is not a center of strength
and Allam has underestimated the importance of hints that indicate that the dispute between Assad and Makhlouf reveals deeper divisions within the ruling family in Syria, and he said, "The Syrian government does not allow you to be stronger than it, and Makhlouf has only money, and there are other people like him." They possess wealth in Syria, "he said, adding that Makhlouf is not in the army and is unpopular with people, while the army and intelligence are among the most important and powerful institutions in Syria.

According to Allam, if Makhlouf remains in Syria during this dispute, he may be the best solution to ensure his future in the country, because if he leaves the country on vacation, everything will go well, but if he leaves it because of this conflict, it will be the end for him, and he will not be allowed Back to Syria again.

Control of the economy
It is reported that Makhlouf controlled about 60% of the Syrian economy before the outbreak of the war in 2011. According to estimates, his wealth amounts to about five billion dollars. It was also included earlier in the list of US sanctions for supporting the Damascus government.

Last month, Saudi Arabia revealed a cache of 44.7 million amphetamine tablets known as "Captagon", which was smuggled to Saudi Arabia from Syria through a shipment bearing the logo of a Makhlouf company.

The site pointed out that the crackdown on the Makhlouf Empire is part of a wide-scale campaign launched by the Syrian government aimed at fighting corruption, at a time when the Syrian economy is witnessing a major collapse due to the war raging in the country nine years ago, and severe sanctions being imposed on the regime, not to mention the economic crisis that Lebanon lives next to it.