Tycoon says Assad govt seeking his arrest, profit
DAMASCUS: Syrian tycoon Rami Makhlouf on Sunday accused the regime of threatening to arrest him and close his telecommunications empire if he does not hand over profits.
Mr Makhlouf, a first cousin of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, made the latest accusations against the Damascus government in a 16-minute Facebook video — his third recorded diatribe since April.
The head of Syria’s largest mobile operator, Syriatel, has been embroiled in a power struggle with the Assad government since last summer when authorities seized his Al-Bustan charity and dissolved militias affiliated to him.
On Sunday, Mr Makhlouf said authorities are “demanding we forfeit our company’s profits” and hand over “120% of the profits to the state or else we will be arrested”.
Failure to comply, he complained, would prompt authorities to revoke Syriatel’s licence.
A few hours after the latest video was broadcast, Syria’s telecoms authority announced it would take all necessary measures to recover outstanding monies owed by Syriatel for maintaining its operating licence.
When the finance ministry in December froze the assets of several businessmen over tax evasion and illicit enrichment, the Syrian press said Mr Makhlouf, his wife and companies were included.
At the end of April and again in early May, Mr Makhlouf, who had kept a low profile throughout Syria’s nine-year-war, posted scathing online attacks against authorities.
He said they were demanding US$185 million (about 5.9 billion baht) in payments from Syriatel, and urged Mr Assad to intervene and reschedule the payment.
Mr Makhlouf, who also has stakes in electricity, oil and real estate, has accused security services of detaining employees to intimidate him into stepping down from his businesses.
According to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor, around 40 Syriatel employees and 19 from Al-Bustan have been arrested since April.
Condemning the arrests, Mr Makhlouf claimed authorities would release the employees if he paid the $185 million and resigned as head of Syriatel.
Mr Makhlouf, 51, said he would be willing to pay the amount demanded by authorities but the issue of his resignation was a red line. “Whoever thinks I will resign under these conditions, doesn’t know me,” he said.
Mr Makhlouf — under US sanctions since 2008 — has long been seen as a pillar of the Syrian regime since Mr Assad rose to power in 2000, succeeding his father Hafez. But rumours have swirled in recent months of souring ties between Mr Makhlouf and Mr Assad, who is spearheading an anti-graft campaign in a bid to shore up state finances.
In an interview with Syrian state TV in October, Mr Assad said that he has “called on everyone in the private sector who has squandered state funds to return the money”.