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Mustafa Tlass

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Mustafa Tlass
مصطفى طلاس‎
Portrait of Tlass in 1988
12thMinister of Defense
In office
22 March 1972 – 12 May 2004
PresidentNureddin al-Atassi(1968–1970)
Ahmad al-Khatib(1970–1971)
Hafez al-Assad(1971–2000)
Bashar al-Assad(2000–2004)
Preceded byHafez Assad
Succeeded byHasan Turkmani
Chief of Staffof theSyrian Army
In office
1968–1972
Preceded byAhmed Suidani
Succeeded byYusuf Shakkur
Member of theRegional Commandof theSyrian Regional Branch
In office
28 September 1968 – 9 June 2005
In office
4 April 1965 – December 1965
Personal details
Born
Mustafa Abdul Qadir Tlass

(1932-05-11)11 May 1932
Rastan,French Syria
Died27 June 2017(2017-06-27)(aged 85)
Bobigny,France
Political partyArab Socialist Ba'ath Party – Syria Regionof theArab Socialist Ba'ath Party
Was a member of theoriginal Ba'ath Partyand its Syrian Regional Branch until 1966
RelationsNahed Tlass(daughter)
Manaf Tlass(son)
Firas Tlass(son)
Abdul Razzaq Tlass(nephew)
Akram Ojjeh(Son-in-law)
Mansour Ojjeh(Grandson-in-law)
Military service
AllegianceSyria
Branch/serviceSyrian Army
Years of service1952–2004
RankColonel General
Battles/wars

Mustafa Abdul Qadir Tlass(Arabic:مصطفى عبد القادر طلاس,romanized:Musṭafā ʿAbd al-Qādir Ṭalās;11 May 1932 – 27 June 2017) was aSyriansenior military officer and politician who was Syria's minister of defense from 1972 to 2004.[1]He was part of the four-member Regional Command during theHafez Assadera.

Early life and education[edit]

Tlass was born inRastannear the city ofHomsto a prominent localSunni Muslimfamily on 11 May 1932.[2][3]His father, Abdul Qadir Tlass, was a minor Sunni noble who made a living during theOttomanperiod by selling ammunition to the Turkish garrisons.[4]On the other hand, members of his family also worked for the French occupiers after theFirst World War.[5]His paternal grandmother was ofCircassianorigin and his mother was ofTurkishdescent.[6]Tlass is said to also have some Alawite family connections through his mother.[2][7]He received primary and secondary education in Homs.[2]In 1952, he entered theHoms Military Academy.[2]

Career[edit]

Chief of Staff Tlass meeting Egyptian PresidentGamal Abdel Nasserin Cairo, 1969

Tlass joined theBa'ath Partyat the age of 15, and metHafez al-Assadwhen studying at themilitary academy in Homs.[8]The two officers became friends when they were both stationed inCairoduring the period of 1958–1961United Arab Republicmerger between Syria andEgypt:while ardentPan Arabnationalists, they both worked to break up the union, which they viewed as unfairly balanced in Egypt's favor.[citation needed]When Hafez al-Assad was briefly imprisoned byNasserat the breakup of the union, Tlass fled and rescued his wife and sons to Syria.[4]

During the 1960s, Hafez al-Assad rose to prominence in the Syrian government through the1963 coup d'état,backed by the Ba'ath party. He then promoted Tlass to high-ranking military and party positions. In 1965, while he was Ba'athist army commander ofHoms,Lieutenant Colonel Mustafa Tlass arrested his pro-government comrades.[9]A1966 coupby anAlawite-dominated Ba'ath faction further strengthened al-Assad, and by association Tlass.[citation needed]Tensions within the government soon became apparent, however, with al-Assad emerging as the prime proponent of a pragmatist, military-based faction opposed to the ideological radicalism of the dominant ultra-leftists. Syrian defeat in the 1967Six-Day Warembarrassed the government, and in 1968 al-Assad managed to install Tlass as new Chief-of-Staff.[citation needed]After the debacle of an attempted Syrian intervention in theBlack Septemberconflict, the power struggle came to open conflict.[citation needed]

In 1969, Tlass led a military mission toBeijing,and secured weapons deals with the Chinese government.[10][11][12]In a move deliberately calculated to antagonize the Soviet Union to stay out of the succession dispute then going on in Syria, Mustafa Tlass allowed himself to be photographed wavingMao Zedong'sLittle Red Book,just two months after bloody clashes between Chinese and Soviet armies on the Ussuri river.[13][14]The Soviet Union then agreed to back down and sell Syria weapons.[citation needed]

Under cover of the 1970 "Corrective Revolution",Hafez al-Assad seized power and installed himself as Dictator. Tlass was promoted to minister of defense in 1972, and became one of al-Assad's most trusted loyalists during the following 30 years of one-man rule in Syria.As'ad AbuKhalilargues that Mustafa Tlass was well-suited for Hafez al-Assad as a defense minister in that "he had no power base, he was mediocre, and he had no political skills, and his loyalty to his boss was complete."[15]During his term as defense minister, Mustafa Tlass was functional in suppressing all dissent regardless of being Islamists or democrats.[16]

On 19 October 1999, defence minister of China, GeneralChi Haotian,after meeting with Mustafa Tlass in Damascus to discuss expanding military ties between Syria and China, flew directly to Israel and met withEhud Barak,the then prime minister and defence minister of Israel where they discussed military relations. Among the military arrangements was a 1 billion dollar Israeli Russian sale of military aircraft to China, which were to be jointly produced by Russia and Israel.[17]

At the beginning of the 2000s, Tlass was also deputy prime minister in addition to his post as defense minister.[18]He was also a member of Baath Party's central committee.[19]His other party roles included the head of the party military bureau and chairman of the party military committee.[20]

Controversial writings and controversies[edit]

Tlass attempted to create a reputation for himself as a man of culture and emerged as an important patron ofSyrian literature.He published several books of his own, and started a publishing house,Tlass Books,which has been internationally criticized[21]for publishing allegedanti-Semiticmaterials.[4]

In 1998, Syrian Defense Minister Tlass boasted toAl Bayannewspaper that he was the one who gave the green light to "the resistance" inLebanonto attack and kill 241 US marines and 58 French paratroopers, but that he prevented attacks on the Italian soldiers of the multi-national force because "I do not want a single tear falling from the eyes of [Italian actress]Gina Lollobrigida,whom [I] loved ever since my youth. "[22][23]In October of the same year, Tlass stated that there was no such country asJordan,but only "South Syria".[24]

Tlass had also boasted to the National Assembly aboutcannibalistatrocities committed against Israeli soldiers who fell captive in theYom Kippur war."I gave the Medal of the Republic's Hero, to a soldier from Aleppo, who killed 28 Jewish soldiers. He did not use the military weapon to kill them but utilized the ax to decapitate them. He then devoured the neck of one of them and ate it in front of the people. I am proud of his courage and bravery, for he actually killed by himself 28 Jews by count and cash."[25][26]

There have been three missing Israeli soldiers in the Bekaa valley since the June 1982 war in Lebanon. Tlass allegedly told a Saudi magazine: "We sent Israel the bones of dogs, and Israel may protest as much as it likes."[27]

During his career, Tlass also became known for colorful language. In 1991, when Syria was participating on theCoalitionside in theGulf War,he stated that he felt "an overwhelming joy" whenSaddam HusseinsentSCUD-missiles towardsIsrael.In August 1998, Tlass caused a minor uproar in Arab political circles, when he denouncedPalestinianleaderYasser Arafatas "the son of sixty thousand whores."[28][29]The long-standing conflict between the Assad government and thePalestine Liberation Organizationwould not end until after Hafez al-Assad's death in 2000.[citation needed]

In 2000, the widow and children of Ira Weinstein who was killed in a February 1996Hamassuicide bombing, filed a lawsuit against Tlass and the head of Syrian military intelligence in Lebanon,Ghazi Kanaan,charging that they were responsible for providing the perpetrators with material resources and training.[30]

In an interview which airedRTon 8 June 2009 (as translated by MEMRI), Tlass claimed that actressGina Lollobrigidahad once told him that he was the "one love in my life." He also claimed thatLady Dianawrote him letters that "were full of love and appreciation", and thatPrince Charlesgave him a gold-platedSterling submachine gunas a gift.[31]

Books[edit]

In 1986, he defended his doctoral dissertation on the military strategy ofMarshal of the Soviet UnionGeorgy Zhukovat theSorbonne.However, on the same year, his doctoral dissertation defense was rejected after the media publicised several anti-Semitic statements made by him.[32]

Tlass also wrote books about Syria's military and political history and also books of poetry, general Arab history, and a history of the military tactics used byMuhammad.[33]His writings allegedly reflect anti-Semitism and belief in conspiracy theories.[33]He also published two-volume memoirs (eventually extended to five), namelyMirat Hayati(Reflections of my life) in 2005.[33]The memoirs were widely ridiculed around the Arab world and outragedBashar Al-Assaddue to its content, making various claims about ordering summary executions of dissidents and Israelis and crediting himself for bringing Hafez and Bashar to power.[34]Tlass, whom close friends had described as a sex-obsessed maniac who tried to sleep with as many women as he could, also described in graphic detail his outlandish attempts at seducing women: "As my eyes were fixated on her beautiful breasts I noticed she was wearing a white and transparent nightgown that concealed nothing of God's creation," Tlass wrote about a neighbor he fantasized for days.[35]

The Matzah of Zion[edit]

In 1983, Tlass wrote and publishedThe Matzah of Zion,which is a treatment of theDamascus affairof 1840 that repeats the ancient "blood libel", thatJewsuse the blood of murdered non-Jews in religious rituals such as bakingMatzabread.[36]In this book, he argues that the true religious beliefs of Jews are "black hatred against all humans and religions," and that no Arab country should ever sign a peace treaty withIsrael.[37]Tlass re-printed the book several times, and stood by its conclusions. Following the book's publication, Tlass toldDer Spiegel,that this accusation against Jews was valid and that his book is "an historical study... based on documents from France, Vienna and the American University in Beirut."[37][38]

Regarding the book, Tlass stated that "I intend through publication of this book to throw light on some secrets of the Jewish religion based on the conduct of the Jews and their fanaticism" and that both Eastern and Western civilizations threw Jews into ghettos only after recognizing their "destructive badness". He also claimed that since 1840, "every mother warned her child: Do not stray far from home. The Jew may come by and put you in his sack to kill you and suck your blood for the Matzah of Zion."[39]

In 1991The Matzah of Zionwas translated into English. Egyptian producerMunir Radhisubsequently decided it was the ideal "Arab answer" to the filmSchindler's Listand later announced plans to produce a film adaptation ofThe Matzah of Zion.[40]The book also reportedly served as a "scientific" basis for a renewal of the blood libel charge in international forums. In 2001,Al-Ahrampublished an article titled"A Jewish Matzah Made from Arab Blood"which summarizedThe Matzah of Zion,concluding that: "The bestial drive to knead Passover matzahs with the blood of non-Jews is [confirmed] in the records of the Palestinian police where there are many recorded cases of the bodies of Arab children who had disappeared being found, torn to pieces without a single drop of blood. The most reasonable explanation is that the blood was taken to be kneaded into the dough of extremist Jews to be used in matzahs to be devoured during Passover."[38]

After Hafez al-Assad[edit]

The succession ofBashar al-Assad,Hafez's son, seems to have been secured by a group of senior officials, including Tlass.[41]After the death of Assad in 2000, a 9-member committee was formed to oversee the transition period, and Tlass was among its members.[42]

Whether true or not, Tlass and his supporters were viewed by many as opponents of the discreet liberalization pursued by the younger al-Assad, and to maintain Syria's hardline foreign policy stances; but also as fighting for established privileges, having been heavily involved in government corruption. In February 2002 in the Jordanian dailyAl Dustourstated that Tlass submitted his letter of resignation to Bashar al-Assad, and was set to step down in July 2002.[30]However, in 2004, Tlass was replaced byHasan Turkmanias defense minister.[20][43]It is also argued thatShawkatpushed for the removal of Mustafa Tlass.[44]Tlass also quit the regional command in 2005.[45]

Mustafa Tlass and his son,Firas,both left Syria after the revolt against Assad began in 2011.[46]Mustafa Tlass left for France for what he described as medical treatment.[46]Firas, a business tycoon, left Syria forEgyptin 2011, too.[46]It is also reported that he is inDubai.[47]

In July 2012,Manaf Tlass,a Syrian officer and another son of Mustafa, defected from the Assad government and fled toTurkeyand then toFrance.[46]

Personal life and death[edit]

Tlass married Lamia Al Jabiri, a member of the Aleppine aristocracy,[8]in 1958.[2]His marriage secured his position among the traditional elite and enabled him to advance socially.[4]They had four children: Nahid (born 1958),Firas(born 1960),Manaf(born 1964), and Sarya (born 1978).[48]His daughter Nahid was married to Saudi millionaire arms dealerAkram Ojjeh,forty years her senior.[49]She has lived in Paris since the onset ofSyrian uprising.[49]His younger daughter, Sarya, is married to a Lebanese from Baalbak.[4]

Tlass was the only member of the Ba'ath government who took part in the traditional social establishment of Syria.[4]His hobbies are said to include horseback riding, tennis, and swimming.[2]

Tlass died on 27 June 2017 inAvicenne Hospitalin Paris, France, at the age of 85.[50]

Honours[edit]

National honours[edit]

Foreign honours[edit]

Bibliography[edit]

  • Dagher, Sam (2019).Assad or We Burn the Country(First U.S. ed.). New York: Little, Brown & Company.ISBN978-0316556705.

References[edit]

  1. ^"Profile: Mustafa Tlas".BBC.2004.Retrieved5 July2012.
  2. ^abcdef"The Man who Enraged the Palestinians: Syrian Defense Minister Mustafa Tlas".The Estimate.Archived fromthe originalon 13 September 2012.Retrieved5 July2012.
  3. ^Who's Who in the Arab World 2007-2008.Beirut: Publitec. 2011. p. 809.ISBN978-3-11-093004-7.
  4. ^abcdef"Lt. Gen. Mustafa Tlass".Middle East Intelligence Bulletin.2(6). 1 July 2000.
  5. ^Joseph Kechichian (27 July 2012)."Syria is bigger than individuals, says defected brigadier".Gulf News.Retrieved27 July2012.
  6. ^Hanna Batatu (1999),Syria's Peasantry, the Descendants of Its Lesser Rural Notables, and Their Politics,Princeton University Press, p. 218 (Table 18-1),ISBN140084584X
  7. ^Shmuel Bar (2006)."Bashar's Syria: The Regime and its Strategic Worldview"(PDF).Comparative Strategy.25(5): 353–445.doi:10.1080/01495930601105412.S2CID154739379.
  8. ^abBriscoe, Ivan; Floor Janssen Rosan Smits (November 2012)."Stability and economic recovery after Assad: key steps for Syria's post-conflict transition"(PDF).Clingendael:1–51. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 19 November 2012.Retrieved7 March2013.
  9. ^Fisk, Robert (6 March 2012)."With that history, why did we think Syria would fall?".Belfast Telegraph.Retrieved19 July2012.
  10. ^Peter Mansfield (1973).The Middle East: a political and economic survey.Oxford University Press. p. 480.ISBN0-19-215933-X.Retrieved28 June2010.
  11. ^George Meri Haddad, Jūrj Marʻī Ḥaddād (1973).Revolutions and Military Rule in the Middle East: The Arab states pt. I: Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan, Volume 2.R. Speller. p. 380.ISBN9780831500603.Retrieved28 June2010.
  12. ^Europa Publications Limited (1997).The Middle East and North Africa, Volume 43.Europa Publications. p. 905.ISBN1-85743-030-1.Retrieved28 June2010.
  13. ^Robert Owen Freedman (1982).The Soviet Policy Toward the Middle East Since 1970.Praeger. p. 34.ISBN978-0-03-061362-3.Retrieved28 June2010.
  14. ^Robert Owen Freedman (1991).Moscow and the Middle East: Soviet policy since the invasion of Afghanistan.CUP Archive. p. 40.ISBN0-521-35976-7.Retrieved28 June2010.
  15. ^AbuKhalil, As'ad (20 July 2012)."Damascus Bombs and Mysteries".Al Akhbar.Archived fromthe originalon 21 January 2018.Retrieved20 July2012.
  16. ^Koelbl, Susanne (21 February 2005)."A 101 Course in Mideast Dictatorships".Der Spiegel.Retrieved24 July2012.
  17. ^"China defense minister visits Israel".Archived30 May 2012 at theWayback MachineWorld Tribune.21 October 1999
  18. ^Bruce Maddy-Weitzman (2002).Middle East Contemporary Survey, Vol. 24, 2000.The Moshe Dayan Center. p. 557.ISBN978-965-224-054-5.Retrieved9 February2013.
  19. ^Moubayed, Sami (26 May – 1 June 2005)."The faint smell of jasmine".Al Ahram Weekly.744.Archived fromthe originalon 25 March 2013.Retrieved2 March2013.
  20. ^abHinnebusch, Raymond (2011). "The Ba'th Party in Post-Ba'thist Syria: President, Party and the Struggle for 'Reform'".Middle East Critique.20(2): 109–125.doi:10.1080/19436149.2011.572408.S2CID144573563.
  21. ^Question of Violation of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms in Any Part of the World.Archived6 February 2015 at theWayback MachineWritten statement submitted by the Association for World Education, 10 February 2004
  22. ^"A crush on Lollobrigida benefited Italian troops".Deseret News.3 January 1998.Retrieved7 December2012.
  23. ^Karmon, Ely (28 February 2010)."No models of example".The Jerusalem Post.Retrieved7 December2012.
  24. ^Schenker, David (2003).Dancing with Saddam(PDF).Lanham: Lexington Books. p. 11. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 6 October 2014.Retrieved29 January2013.
  25. ^Official Gazette of Syria (11 July 1974 Issue)
  26. ^Letter Maurice SwanThe New York Times23 June 1975
  27. ^London based Saudi weekly, 4–10 August 1984.
  28. ^"Arafat 'son of 60,000 whores'".BBC.4 August 1999.Retrieved7 December2012.
  29. ^Gambill, Gary C. (April 2001)."Syria's Foreign Relations: The Palestinian Authority".Middle East Intelligence Bulletin.3(4).Retrieved13 August2013.
  30. ^abGambill, Gary C. (October 2002)."Sponsoring Terrorism: Syria and Hamas".Middle East Intelligence Bulletin.4(10).Retrieved7 July2012.
  31. ^Former Syrian Minister of Defense Mustafa Tlass Displays Personal Memorabilia and Reminisces about His Imaginary Affairs with Actress Gina Lollobrigida and Lady Di,MEMRI, Transcript – Clip No. 2144, 8 June 2009.
  32. ^"French Government Has Reportedly Facilitated Review of Doctoral Dissertation by Anti-semitic Author".Jewish Telegraphic Agency.22 June 1986.Retrieved21 July2022.
  33. ^abcAboul Enein, Youssef H. (May–June 2005)."Syrian Defense Minister General Mustafa Tlas: Memoirs, Volume 2"(PDF).Military Review.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 26 September 2012.Retrieved5 July2012.
  34. ^Dagher 2019,p. 246.
  35. ^Dagher 2019,p. 96.
  36. ^An Anti-Jewish Book Linked to Syrian Aide,New York Times,15 July 1986.
  37. ^ab"Literature Based on Mixed Sources – Classic Blood Libel: Mustafa Tlas' Matzah of Zion".ADL. Archived fromthe originalon 13 April 2011.Retrieved5 July2012.
  38. ^abBlood LibelJudith Apter Klinghoffer,History News Network,19 December 2006.
  39. ^Arabs' Hatred of Jews: Can the Carnage Be a Surprise?Abraham Cooper,Los Angeles Times,12 September 1986.
  40. ^Jeffrey Goldberg (2008).Prisoners: A Story of Friendship and Terror.Vintage Books. p. 250.ISBN978-0-375-72670-5.
  41. ^Ghadbian, Najib (Autumn 2001)."The New Asad: Dynamics of Continuity and Change in Syria"(PDF).Middle East Journal.55(4): 624–641. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 12 December 2018.Retrieved9 March2013.
  42. ^"Bashar Aims to Consolidate Power in the Short-Term and to Open up Gradually".APS Diplomat News Service.19 June 2000.Retrieved26 March2013.
  43. ^Flynt Lawrence Leverett (1 January 2005).Inheriting Syria: Bashar's Trial by Fire.Brookings Institution Press. pp.190.ISBN978-0-8157-5206-6.Retrieved12 March2013.
  44. ^Gambill, Gary C. (February 2002)."The Military-Intelligence Shakeup in Syria".Middle East Intelligence Bulletin.4(2).Retrieved7 July2012.
  45. ^"Syria military. Minister of Defense".Global Security.Retrieved5 July2012.
  46. ^abcdOweis, Khaled Yacoub (5 July 2012)."Syrian general breaks from Assad's inner circle".Reuters.Retrieved5 July2012.
  47. ^Julian Borger; Martin Chulov (5 July 2012)."Top Syrian general 'defects to Turkey'".The Guardian.Retrieved5 July2012.
  48. ^"Personal Profile".Firas Tlass website.Archived fromthe originalon 28 May 2004.Retrieved6 July2012.
  49. ^ab"Defection of Syrian general 'significant': US".AFP.6 July 2012. Archived fromthe originalon 24 February 2014.Retrieved6 July2012.
  50. ^"وفاة وزير الدفاع السوري الأسبق مصطفى طلاس".
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