As rebels, led by an Islamist group, took control of Damascus, the presidential palace and the main residence of the deposed president's family were ransacked.
One man leaves with a huge orange Louis Vuitton bag, while another sets his sights on a work of art. Like them, dozens of Syrians visited the main residence of Bashar al-Assad, stealing the personal effects of the deposed president and his family. Two kilometers away, on a hill overlooking Damascus, the presidential palace was also invaded.
Driven out by a spectacular offensive by rebel forces, led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the dictator fled Damascus in disaster, heading for Moscow (even if the Kremlin has so far refused to confirm his presence ). This coup put an end to half a century of bloody and unchallenged reign of the Assad clan over Syria. In the process, the doors of symbols of the regime, such as Saydnaya prison, were opened and the premises ransacked. Franceinfo returns to the images of these lootings, which have gone viral on social networks.
The rebels took control of the presidential palace on Sunday December 8. Perched on Mount Mezzeh, the 31,500 square meter main building overlooks the Syrian capital. One of the first opponents to enter the scene was immortalized by a photographer from the American news agency Associated Press. He poses gravely in an office, behind a multitude of hastily abandoned cards. The premises were quickly ransacked, and one of the reception rooms set on fire.
Upon entering, visitors are almost incredulous at the splendor of the place: the floor of the “people's palace”, which was forbidden to them, is made of Carrara marble, and the furniture is made of marquetry and precious wood. Some looters do not hesitate to leave with armchairs, in front of the lenses of the international press.
Bashar al-Assad also left behind an impressive private garage, filled with a collection of dozens of shiny luxury cars. Rolls Royce, Ferrari, Aston Martin, Mercedes, Audi, BMW… In the images filmed inside, we even discover an astonishing Revcon Trailblazer camper van, a rare vehicle produced in the 1990s and 2000s, or one. .. armored van.
In the main residence of the “butcher of Damascus”, located in the very upscale Al-Malki district, the looters took what they could. “It’s his daughter’s room. It has been stripped (…) Take it, aunt, take it! You are within your rights!”laughs a Syrian videographer, hilarious, while filming a busy woman.
The property, located on a hill overlooking Damascus, is made up of three buildings of six floors each. The videographer compares the place to a shopping center: “The baby section is downstairs, the men's section is up. The teen section is here”he jokes. Adolescents, children, parents… Entire families took part in looting and some left with their arms full of dishes.
Still in the residence, another videographer takes care to trample all the portraits of Hafez el-Assad, founder of the regime and father of the deposed president, which are in his path. One of the looters has set his sights on a work of art with a poppy, and in his other hand is holding a suitcase loaded with the rest of his loot.
As in the presidential palace, the luxury is ostentatious: marble, chandeliers, carefully carved staircase, giant screens… In 2012, the British media The Guardian had revealed in an investigation the lifestyle of the Syrian leader, including spending of thousands of dollars on jewelry and furniture by his wife.
Some make even more surprising discoveries: the actor and influencer Fadi Maaz, with almost two million subscribers, shared a video on his Instagram account where he discovers a fridge full of frozen meat, with an Hermès bag abandoned in front of the household appliance. Further on, he comes across a collection of carefully arranged paintings, or even a Vuitton trunk whose value is estimated at more than 44,000 euros, according to The Guardian. He then films himself trying out a weight machine in a gym.
Unannounced visitors even delved into the dictator's private life, leafing through family photo albums. Bashar al-Assad holding a baby, Bashar al-Assad in swimming trunks, Bashar al-Assad on a yellow scooter…
The palace of Major General Maher al-Assad, younger brother and main support of the deposed president, was also ransacked. A very sophisticated network of tunnels was discovered there. The military leader, also on the run, embodied the hard wing of the regime, and was under international sanctions, due to his involvement in the repression of the Syrian revolt. He is notably suspected of having ordered the chemical attack on Eastern Ghouta in 2013 and of having participated in the production and trafficking of captagon, a psychotropic drug used in particular by jihadists.
According to a 2022 US State Department report, the fortune of the president's extended family is estimated at between one and two billion dollars. The same year, 69% of Syrians lived in poverty, while a quarter of the population was affected by extreme poverty, according to the World Bank.
