Assef Shawkat
Assef Shawkat (Arabic: آصِفُ شَوْكَتْ, romanized: ʾĀṣif Šawkat; 15 January 1950 – 18 July 2012) was a Syrian military officer who was the Deputy Minister of Defense of Syria from September 2011 until his death in July 2012.
Assef Shawkat | |
|---|---|
آصِفُ شَوْكَتْ | |
| Deputy Minister of Defense | |
| In office September 2011 – 18 July 2012 | |
| President | Bashar al-Assad |
| Minister | Dawoud Rajiha |
| Deputy Chief of Staff of the Syrian Armed Forces | |
| In office 2009–2011 | |
| Head of Military Intelligence Directorate | |
| In office 2005–2009 | |
| Preceded by | Hassan Khalil |
| Succeeded by | Abdel-Fatah Qudsiyeh |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 15 January 1950 Al-Madehleh, Tartus, First Syrian Republic |
| Died | 18 July 2012 (aged 62) Damascus, Syria |
| Political party | Syrian Regional Branch of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party |
| Spouse | |
| Relations | Hafez al-Assad (father-in-law) Bassel (brother-in-law) Bashar (brother-in-law) Majd (brother-in-law) Maher (brother-in-law) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Syria |
| Rank | Lieutenant general |
| Battles/wars |
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He was the brother-in-law of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, having married his older sister Bushra.
He and three other top Syrian government officials were killed on 18 July 2012 in Damascus during a deadly bomb attack allegedly organized by the Assad regime . Shawkat was a key suspect in a terrorist attack in Beirut that killed Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri in 14 February 2005. US Department of Treasury sanctioned Shawkat in 2006 for orchestrating the assassination, describing him as "a key architect" of Syrian occupation of Lebanon.