Mohammed Rami Makhlouf, 22, and his younger brother Ali Rami Makhlouf like expensive cars, big muscles, and luxury resorts - and they especially like to post on Instagram. Photos and videos from last summer show the two celebrating on Mykonos, in Saint Tropez, in Cannes, in Monte Carlo and jet skiing off the Syrian coast.
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A post shared by علي رامي مخلوف (@ali_r_makhlouf) on Aug 16, 2019 at 6:56 PDT
The Makhlouf brothers' public display gives insights into the richest and most powerful clan in Syria. While much of the country is destory, the super rich continue to bless - at the cost of a short general public. A research report recently characterized Syria as an "increasingly sophisticated plundering economy".
The Makhloufs and the Assads are the innermost core of the Syrian regime. Since 1958, the two families are related by kinship: At that time married Hafez al-Assad, founder of the still-dominant dynasty, and Anisa Makhlouf. Since then, the Assad and Makhlouf sons have assumed leadership positions in the military and intelligence services - and in business.
Like many Assads, many Makhloufs are on European and American sanction lists, firstly because they are allegedly directly responsible for torture and homicide, or because they indirectly contribute to raising billions in the regime. But despite the trade restrictions and strict conditions, they seem to succeed in finding new ways to circumvent them and to increase or protect their assets.
ITAR-TASS / imago images
Skyline of Moscow: With real estate deals, the Assad clan wants to secure its assets
For example, between December 2013 and June 2019, in the middle of the Syrian civil war, the Makhloufs bought more than $ 40 million worth of luxury apartments in Moscow, according to findings from the NGO Global Witness on the relationship between resource exploitation, corruption and corruption investigates military conflicts.
The European and American sanctions do not stand in the way of Makhloufs on such investments, because Russia has not imposed any sanctions on them. Nevertheless, the clan went to great lengths to disguise the true owners of the Moscow real estate. Russian mailbox companies and Lebanese offshore accounts were interposed according to "Global Witness".
"The complex lending structure that obscures the source of money would be unnecessary if the funds were simply to stay in Russia, suggesting that the money should be moved to other jurisdictions through Russia," the organization said. The Syrian regime seems to use Moscow as a loophole to continue access to international capital. In the past, Rami Makhlouf, father of the two brothers, had already used complex offshore constructs for this purpose, as the "Panama Papers" revealed.
AFP / Syrian Presidency Facebook page
Mighty Clan: Assad with Ms. Asma, Children Visiting a Wounded in Homs (2016)
Rami Makhlouf, cousin of Bashar al-Assad, symbolizes the corruption of the Syrian regime like no other: Before the war, he controlled more than half of the economy: no lucrative company in the country was conceivable without his participation. However, this year, ruler Assad seems to have taken some of Makhlouf's stakes - the regime needs money and new middlemen who have not yet burned internationally.
The Makhlouf brothers are not on sanction lists yet - they are not automatically held liable for their father's offenses, even if their fortunes seem to come from his dark channels. The 22-year-old Mohammed Makhlouf describes himself as a self-made billionaire, but how he has amassed his property exactly - two billion dollars, according to their own information - is not clear. His recent career was summed up as follows: he was born into a "wealthy family" and "studied, learned and practiced hobbies in Damascus". One of his hobbies is buying cars. Mohammed Makhlouf has lived mainly in Dubai for several years; he did not complete compulsory military service in Syria.
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A post shared by MRM (@ mohammad.r.makhlouf) on Jun 2, 2019 at 5:57 PDT
For the foreseeable future, Mohammed seems to follow in Rami's footsteps, just as his father had inherited his role from his grandfather before him - as a tycoon of the Syrian regime. This year, the 22-year-old made ads that should put him in a particularly good light. One of them states that in 2018 he was elected the "most generous person in Syria". In 2022 he will start a holding company. She is to earn money for the reconstruction of the country.
