Overview
- Two sources reported that Rifaat al-Assad died in the United Arab Emirates at age 88, and a family source described natural causes.
- A brother of Hafez al-Assad and uncle of deposed leader Bashar al-Assad, he rose to power after the 1970 coup and later served as vice president.
- He commanded elite forces during the 1982 Hama crackdown against the Muslim Brotherhood, a campaign that earned him the label "Butcher of Hama" and left thousands dead.
- Swiss prosecutors announced in March 2024 that he would face trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity tied to the Hama operation, which he denied.
- A French court in 2020 convicted him of acquiring property with diverted state funds, ordering four years in prison and seizing assets estimated at €100 million in France and a €29 million London property.