Despite US sanctions .. A businessman close to the Assad regime continues its activity

Omar Hourani - Gaziantep

Syrian businessman Samer continues to win his business and investment activities despite US sanctions that have been in place for a while, especially with regard to reconstruction projects in the vicinity of the capital Damascus, amid questions about the usefulness of those sanctions to reduce the economic activity of President Bashar al-Assad's regime.

The win has exploited its complex relations to build the foundations of its financial empire, which is divided by observers about who it represents, whether the Assad regime or Russia or even Iran, after its rapid ability to appear on the Syrian arena and expand its control at the expense of many businessmen close to the Assad regime, Rami Makhlouf.

The victory has been on the scene for several years after he was involved in a rotten wheat deal followed by a murder in Turkey. He was arrested there before being released and returned to Syria to resume his activity amid doubts about the circumstances of his release from prison despite his confession.

"People like others have ties with the UAE and some countries in the system," said Mohammed al-Sharbaji, an activist in property and housing rights in Syria. "It is his job to attract imaginary investors connected with countries such as the UAE or elsewhere to enter reconstruction projects, International arena".

Looting and displacement
On the domestic level, the name of the victory has emerged strongly with regard to the reconstruction operations carried out by the Assad regime in the vicinity of Damascus, where the companies acquired most of these projects, to be able to attract a number of investors from China and other countries supporting the system, before they all stop after the sanctions Imposed by the US administration on the Syrian regime and all its client entities.

The winning activities focus on the areas that witnessed the displacement agreements in the countryside of Damascus, such as Darya, Qaboun, Kafarsoush, al-Fadl, Al-Razi, Hrasta and Joubar. The Assad regime has completely destroyed the houses of civilians. These areas are more important than others in Homs, As it is within the administrative borders of Damascus and its countryside, and the beginning of the displacement operations in Damascus and its countryside in the city of Darya and ended Balqlmon East.

With the issuance of Law No. 10, which allows the regime to deprive dissidents and displaced people of their property, the talk of large construction projects began to emerge. The winning companies were the ones with the highest hand. The regime forces carried out systematic demolitions on the pretext of tunnels in several areas, , During which the entire residential areas were demolished, the re-establishment and study of new organizational schemes, but it was not agreed who will receive the file of the neighborhood yet.

The project was announced in 2012 by the head of the system in the name of the organization of eastern Mezze, and the actual work began in mid-2017 by the province of Damascus and Damascus Sham Holding Company, but the system when the parents to evacuate in 2012 allocated to a number of families financial amounts of rent allowances and compensation for forcing them To evacuate their homes, but these compensation has been suspended three and a half years ago.

The second project is Basilica City and announced its organizational plan on 26 March 2018, which was prepared in the Triangle of Kafr Sousse and Darya, extending to Al-Qad and Assali, and the thirtieth Street, which was then under the control of the State Organization south of Damascus.

"The strength of the victory and its penetration into the Assad regime is manifested by the isolation of the conservative regime," said al-Shurbaji in his interview with Al-Jazeera. "He held the position for 12 years. He was at odds with the victory and the appointment of Adil al-'Alabi as a substitute for him to match the victory and his companies. Construction and even extended to the field of oil and trade and others, and became an official partner of the state, which aims to attract investors primarily from China, Venezuela, Brazil and other countries allied to the regime.

Economic sanctions
Despite the harsh sanctions that forced all foreign investors to withdraw from their partnerships with winning and halting their joint ventures, he continued his business and investment activities without any clear traces of those sanctions, which he is likely to be able to circumvent through unnamed partners.

Al-Shurbaji said about the US sanctions that it made all the companies and partners who worked with the win withdraw for fear of listing them on the lists of economic terrorism and the loss of their money. The Chinese were the first to withdraw and stopped all their activities. Even the Lebanese partners who were intending to invest in Syria withdrew. Company them which form a big blow to the system.