By Ethar Abdulhaq
(Zaman Al Wasl) The son and brother of one of the most important officials responsible for the development of chemical weapons for the Syrian regime have British citizenship.
This information came to light to add to Britain’s already existent record of scandals including it exporting hundreds of tons of chemical weapons used by the regime and its scientists in creating Sarin gas.
According to a report by the leading British newspaper “The Times” published on Sunday, Bisher, Amr Armanazi’s son, and Gaith, his older brother both obtained British passports although Amr is included on the Britain and the USA’s sanction lists. Armanazi’s other son, Zaid, obtained British citizenship in 2009 and he works for a banking institution in London.
-Amr Armanazi-
Amr Armanazi is the Director General of the Center for Scientific Studies and Research, an institution subordinate to the Ministry of Defense, which is involved in supervising the modernization of various types of weapons, especially non-conventional ones (chemical, biological). As such, Armanazi holds the title of “head of chemical scientists” in Syria, or “chemical master” of the al-Assad regime.
The revelation that his son and his brother hold British nationality came as the world still reels from the news of the chemical massacre in the northern town of Khan Sheikhoun that left at least 103 people killed. It raises Britain’s level of scandal especially as Armanazi is still heavily supportive of the regime and developing weapons for the regime to use to kill civilians.
According to special data obtained by Zaman al-Wasl, Amr Armanazi was born in 1944 to a Mohammed Najib and Talaat. Muhammad Najib Armanazi was a prominent figure during the French mandate when he held the position of Chief Custodian of the Presidential Palace. Armanazi’s father was born in Hama in 1897, and his family had a well-known palace in the Afif area in central Damascus.
Muhammad Najib held several diplomatic posts including Syria's ambassador to Britain, India and Egypt, and he participated (representing Syria) in the meetings that led to the establishment of the Arab League and the United Nations.
Beyond his father’s influential positions and history, Armanazi is a long-standing close associate of Bashar al-Assad.
Zaman al-Wasl obtained information indicating that two’s relationship developed when Bashar became president of the so-called “Syrian Computer Society.” The association was originally started for Basel al-Assad, and with his death, Bashar became head of the society and many others as the heir to the throne. Amr Armnazi is also closely associated with Dr Emad Mustapha, the former ambassador to Washington, and Bashar’s godfather regarding his relations with the United States.
The Center for Scientific Studies and Research, which is currently headed by Amr Armanazi, was founded in 1969 and is a research entity directly affiliated to the Ministry of Defense. The affiliation confirms the military and clandestine nature of the research and applications developed in the Center. The Center is focused on developing Syria’s military defense capabilities including weapons of mass destruction.
It must be noted that many Syrians often confuse between the Center for Scientific Studies and Research and the Higher Institute of Applied Sciences and Technology due to the proximity of their locations and specializations (Barza and Masakin Barza).
As a result of his role in developing the weapons the regime is using to crush the Syrian revolution, Washington included Amr Armanazi on the list sanctioned persons and institutions subordinate to the regime. Following the American administration, Britain and the EU added Armanazi to their sanction lists.
-Al-Assad Supporters to the Bone-
Ghaith Armanazi, born in 1943, has served as the head of the Arab League mission in London. Ghaith is the executive director of the Syrian British Society, Bashar's front in Britain. The Society was founded in 2003 by Bashar al-Assad’s father-in-law Fawaz al-Akhras.
In February 2017, Ghaith announced the release of a book entitled “The Story of Syria,” published in English. Ghaith spoke about the content and some of the book chapters during a recent interview with the BBC. Ghaith devoted two separate chapters to talk about Hafez al-Assad and his son Bashar’s reigns. He described Hafez al-Assad's coup in 1970 as “The corrective movement led by the late President Hafez al-Assad,” considering that the coup “brought the stability which many Syrians were hoping for.”
During the interview, Ghaith avoided all comments regarding the regime’s violations or crimes against the Syria people. He did not mention the sectarianism of the regime. He refused to consider the dominance of the Alawites of military institutions as a deliberate and planned act by the al-Assad family, but rather the result of circumstances and factors. He described the hereditary system in Syria as “the expected result.”
-Britain’s Influence on Syrian Affairs-
The British influence and intervention in Syrian affairs date back many years, but these interventions were established after the British Empire had places of direct and indirect occupation in the region. However, Britain has been influential in Syria’s contemporary history. Britain was a contributor to Syria Hafez al-Assad’s rise to power, and it later blessed Bashar succeeding as president.
In this regard, it is possible to mention Hafez al-Assad’s visit to Britain in 1965 on the pretext of receiving treatment. A British document revealed that meetings with British officials accompanied the visit.
About a quarter of a century later, Bashar al-Assad went to London to complete his medical school education, which some also consider was a cover for other activities. The issue is cast in further doubt since Bashar became President.
Regardless of Britain’s role as kingmaker in Syria, Britain is inviolably involved in the crimes against the Syrian people as it supplied the al-Assad regime with hundreds of tons of chemical used in the manufacturing of Sarin gas. Britain would never have allowed the Syrian regime to obtain such chemical capabilities unless it was certain that the regime would never use the gas against Israel.
In mid-2014, when the regime was in the middle of destroying its chemical stockpiles and Britain was involved in destroying this stockpile, documents were leaked from the British Foreign Office proving the involvement of British companies in selling chemicals to the regime in the 1980s.
According to this document, the al-Assad regime used chemical phosphate in the manufacture of the deadly sarin gas, and British companies supplied it along with Dimethyl Phosphate, Hexamine and Triethyl Phosphate. It is one of the main materials in the manufacture of Sarin. The British companies also sold hundreds of tons of chemicals and auxiliary devices to Damascus in 2003.
After there was no doubt about the credibility of the document, William Hague, the British Foreign Secretary at the time, was forced to acknowledge the truth, but he said that these dangerous materials were exported “legitimately”. He continued, “According to information we possess, we place a high probability that the chemical exported by the British companies were later used by the Syrians in their programs to produce nerve gases, including sarin.”
Hague acknowledged that the three shipments sent by British companies to the al-Assad regime between 1983-1986 included “a few hundred tons” of chemical material.
A spokeswoman for the British Foreign Office tried to mitigate Britain’s disgrace, saying that “The materials were exported 30 years ago.” In recent years, “There has been a comprehensive adjustment of export controls, a more rigorous legal framework and a more transparent process.” The comments came as a way of saying “let bygones be bygones” regardless of the price Syrians are paying today.
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