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A Scandal Shakes the Throne of Damascus’ New Ruler: “Give Them a Chance”?

An investigation exposes how Sharaa’s inner trio—Hazem, the Australian, and Zurba—took control of 80% of the financial empire once owned by Mohammad Hamsho and Yasar Ibrahim in exchange for legal immunity.
A Scandal Shakes the Throne of Damascus’ New Ruler: “Give Them a Chance”?

The explosive Reuters investigation—meticulously reported by journalists Feras Dalatey and Timour Azhari—is a must-read for every Syrian.

For over a month, I had already been sounding the alarm across multiple posts about the shadow figures surrounding President Ahmad al-Sharaa, those orchestrating the dismantling of the Assad oligarchy’s wealth—only to funnel it into Sharaa’s inner circle or, more broadly, into the coffers of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). The aim? To lay the groundwork for a new financial elite operating under the logic of “a thief robbing a thief, like a son inheriting his father’s loot.”

I spoke at length about Hazem al-Sharaa and Abdul Rahman al-Zurba, and called for the establishment of a National Sovereign Fund to absorb these assets—if the intentions were truly sincere—so that the plundered wealth may be rightfully returned to the Syrian people. That is not a matter of charity or favor; it is their unquestionable right.

What makes this investigation stand out is its unprecedented breach into Sharaa’s financial network, especially the revelation of a previously unknown figure within the committee he formed to seize billions from Assad’s inner circle.

According to the report, the committee is composed of three influential figures from Sharaa’s tight inner circle:

  • Hazem al-Sharaa, the president’s brother and former general manager of Pepsi-Cola in Erbil, Iraq.
  • “Abu Maryam the Australian”, revealed for the first time to be Ibrahim Sukkarieh, commonly referred to as al-Sheikh. His photograph was published for the first time through a disguised social media account under the name Ibrahim bin Masoud, a man internationally wanted for financing terrorism. (Yes—terrorism and shawarma rolled into one.)
  • Abdul Rahman al-Zurba, whose real name is Mustafa Qader, a former baker who has now become the de facto governor of Syria’s Central Bank, controlling monetary policy in the interest of HTS. (To put it bluntly: he has assumed the role once played by Rami Makhlouf.)

Without delving into every detail, the report contains stunning revelations about Jabhat al-Nusra’s split from al-Qaeda in 2016, the financial structures developed by HTS, and the founding of an oil company in 2018 that secured exclusive rights to import fuel derivatives from Turkey. It also reveals the creation of HTS’s own private bank: Bank of Sham.

The investigation also exposes how Sharaa’s inner trio—Hazem, the Australian, and Zurba—took control of 80% of the financial empire once owned by Mohammad Hamsho and Yasar Ibrahim in exchange for legal immunity. We’re talking about billions of dollars. There are also juicy details about Cham Wings airlines.

Another revelation is that Hamsho, as part of the deal, handed over a highly profitable steel recycling plant—originally used to process metals salvaged from Assad’s devastated urban warzones.

 

This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.

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