The memoirs of late Syrian Vice President Abdul Halim Khaddam contain a sensitive account of the intersection of money and political power, alleging that Syria’s state reserves, then worth $12 billion, were registered in the personal name of late President Hafez Assad rather than in the name of state institutions.
اضافة اعلان
Khaddam wrote in his memoirs, edited and presented by Ibrahim Hamidi, editor-in-chief of Al Majalla, that the book is due to be published in early September by Rf Publishing, part of the Saudi Research and Media Group (SRMG).
“It never occurred to anyone that such a large sum would be placed in the personal name of the head of state, even though it belonged to the Syrian state and not to him,” Khaddam wrote.
According to Khaddam’s account, the matter went beyond a formal arrangement and became an internal crisis when Assad received a document indicating that money had been withdrawn from an account held in his name abroad.
Assad reportedly questioned the transaction and requested a copy of the bank transfer order. A few days later, a copy arrived, and an examination of the signature showed that it had been forged.
When the bank was asked where the $65 million had been transferred, it was found to have been directed to an account belonging to Prime Minister Mahmoud al-Zoubi.
Khaddam said Assad was furious and ordered a senior security official to summon al-Zoubi and warn him to return the money or face execution. The money was subsequently returned to the bank, according to the memoir.
The memoirs place the incident within the broader career of al-Zoubi, who served as prime minister from November 1987 until March 2000, making him the longest-serving prime minister since the establishment of the Syrian state in 1918.
Khaddam portrays al-Zoubi harshly, saying he “slipped not only into facilitating corruption but also into practicing it.” He recounts how al-Zoubi built a network of influence extending toward Bassel Assad and Mohammed Makhlouf, while Khaddam himself had raised corruption concerns with Hafez Assad as early as 1989.
According to Khaddam, Assad responded at the time: “Where do you get this information from? Reality is different from what you are saying.”
Khaddam then recounts the final episode from inside the leadership. In mid-May 2000, the late president, who appeared to be showing “signs of death,” summoned several members of the ruling Baath Party leadership to his home and told them: “Mahmoud al-Zoubi has betrayed me. Investigate him and hold him accountable,” without specifying the issue.
Al-Zoubi was removed from the party and referred for investigation. When informed of the decision, he reportedly repeatedly asked, “What have I done?” He then told Khaddam: “If they call me for questioning, I will kill myself.”
On May 24, 2000, when the Damascus police chief arrived with two officers to take him for questioning, al-Zoubi went upstairs in his home and shot himself in the head.
Khaddam wrote that he learned about the alleged forgery and the reserves “shortly” after al-Zoubi’s suicide.
The memoirs also discuss other files linked to al-Zoubi, most notably a contract to purchase Airbus aircraft in the early 1990s. A committee headed by the prime minister was formed to oversee the deal, while a transport minister was excluded after allegedly contacting the French company to “obtain a commission.”
The government approved the contract despite documented objections, Khaddam wrote, after al-Zoubi allegedly gave the impression that the president had approved it.
Khaddam points to what he describes as another paradox: several days after al-Zoubi’s suicide, Deputy Prime Minister Salim Yassin and Transport Minister Mufid Abdel Karim, who had objected to the contract, were arrested “unjustly.” They were sentenced to 15 years in prison and fined an amount exceeding the value of the aircraft.
Khaddam also said that an economic reform study prepared by experts commissioned by late Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri, with the president’s approval, cost $3 million, but “no one among the government and leadership members read it except me.”
The banking documents referred to in the memoirs could not be independently verified, and the account remains the responsibility of its author. Details of the incident, the context surrounding al-Zoubi’s government and the corruption cases associated with it are included in a chapter titled “The Suicide of Mahmoud al-Zoubi.”
Source:Agencies
