Unidentified individuals broke into the mausoleum of former Syrian president Hafez Assad — father of Bashar Assad — in the city of Qardaha in the northwestern part of the country and removed his remains from the grave, Unconfirmed Syrian media reports claimed Monday morning.
Images and videos circulating on social media showed the site heavily damaged and burnt. A large pit was visible where an elaborate tomb had once stood.
The current whereabouts of Hafez Assad’s remains are unknown. The incident comes amid rising violence targeting members of the Alawite sect, the minority to which the Assad family belongs, reportedly at the hands of factions aligned with the newly formed Sunni-led government.
Rebels set fire to Assad’s tomb
In December 2024, following the collapse of the Assad regime, overthrown by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group and allied Sunni militias, rebels attacked the historic mausoleum complex in Qardaha. The site, Assad’s hometown, was torched, causing significant damage to the tomb.
The assault on the tomb was seen as a powerful symbol of the Assad dynasty’s fall and a clear sign of the Alawite community’s diminishing influence in Syria’s shifting political landscape.