Dubai, UAE – Syrian media reported on Wednesday the death of Rifaat al-Assad, uncle of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and former commander of the Defense Brigades, at the age of 89 in Dubai. Rifaat al-Assad was born in 1937 in the town of Qardaha in Latakia Governorate. He received his primary education in his village before enrolling in the Faculty of Political Science at Damascus University. He earned a doctorate in economics in 1977.
He joined the Ba’ath Party in 1952, then enlisted in the Syrian army and rose through the ranks. He played a prominent role in the rise of the Ba’ath Party, especially after the 1963 coup carried out by the “Military Committee,” of which Hafez al-Assad was a member. He also participated in the 1967 war against Israel, where he was in charge of a tank battalion on the Quneitra front.
After Hafez al-Assad rose to the presidency in 1971, Rifaat assumed command of the Defense Brigades, an irregular military force tasked with protecting the ruling power. He became known as the second most powerful man in the Ba’ath regime and his brother’s right-hand man. His forces are believed to have participated in the shelling of Hama in February 1982, which resulted in the deaths of thousands and the destruction of large parts of the city.
