Ali Mahmoud Abbas
{{Short description|Syrian officer and politician}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Distinguish|Mahmoud Abbas|Ali Mahmoud (military officer)}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific_prefix = Lieutenant General
| name = Ali Mahmoud Abbas
| honorific_suffix =
| native_name = {{Script/Arabic|علي محمود عباس}}
| native_name_lang = ar
| pronunciation =
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1964|11|02|df=y}}
| birth_place = Efra,{{Cite web|url=https://snacksyrian.com/وزير-الدفاع-الجديد-ينحدر-من-ريف-دمشق-من/|title=وزير الدفاع الجديد ينحدر من ريف دمشق من هو اللواء علي عباس؟|date=28 April 2022}} Rif Dimashq, Ba'athist Syria
| death_date =
| death_place =
| death_cause =
| resting_place =
| resting_place_coordinates =
| image = Ali Mahmoud Abbas.png
| image_size = 300
| image_upright =
| smallimage =
| smallimage_alt =
| alt =
| caption = Ali Mahmoud Abbas in 2022.
| office1 = Member of the Central Command
of the Ba'ath Party
| term_start1 = 4 May 2024
| term_end1 = 11 December 2024
| order = 18th
| office = Ministry of Defense (Syria){{!}}Minister of Defense
| term_start = 28 April 2022
| term_end = 8 December 2024
| president = Bashar al-Assad
| primeminister = Hussein Arnous
Mohammad Ghazi al-Jalali
| predecessor = Ali Abdullah Ayyoub
| successor = Murhaf Abu Qasra
| office2 = Deputy Chief of the General Staff
of the Army and the Armed Forces
| 1blankname2 = Defense Minister
| 1namedata2 = Ali Abdullah Ayyoub
| term_start2 = 18 March 2021
| term_end2 = 28 April 2022
| 2blankname2 = Chief of Staff
| 2namedata2 = Salim Harba
| predecessor2 = Wasel al-Samir
| successor2 = Mufid Hassan
| party = Ba'ath Party
| spouse =
| education = Homs Military Academy
RCDS
| occupation =
| awards =
| nickname =
| allegiance = {{flag|Ba'athist Syria}}
| branch = {{army|Syria}}
| serviceyears = 1985–2024
| rank = 30px Lieutenant general
| servicenumber =
| unit = Internal Security Brigade
Armored Military College
| commands =
| battles = Syrian Civil War
| mawards =
| footnotes =
}}
Lieutenant General Ali Mahmoud Abbas ({{langx|ar|علي محمود عباس}}; born 2 November 1964) is a Syrian senior military officer and politician who served as the 18th Minister of Defense of Syria, succeeding Ali Abdullah Ayyoub.{{Cite web|url=https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2022/04/28/Syria-names-new-defense-minister-Presidency|title=Syria names new defense minister: Presidency|date=28 April 2022|website=Al Arabiya English}} He is a Sunni Muslim.{{Cite web |last=Lund |first=Aron |date=2022-05-23 |title=Can Assad's New Military Appointments Help Rebuild His Regime? |url=https://tcf.org/content/report/can-assads-new-military-appointments-help-rebuild-his-regime/ |access-date=2023-04-07 |website=The Century Foundation |language=en}}
Early life and education
Abbas was born in 1964 in Efra, Rif Dimashq.{{cite news|author=Prime Minister's Office |url=https://sana.sy/en/?page_id=1900 |title=Prime Minister's Office – Syrian Arab News Agency |newspaper = Syrian Arab News Agency|publisher=Sana.sy |date= |accessdate=2021-10-21}} He joined the Homs Military Academy, specialization of armored vehicles in 1983. He graduated with the rank of lieutenant on October 7, 1985. He first studied higher command in Pakistan in 1997. Between 2000 and 2001, he attended Royal College of Defence Studies in London, UK for postgraduate studies in national defense.
He also attended academic international crisis management course at the Royal Swedish Army Staff College, Stockholm in 2003. In 2004, he participated at the course in directing the state's defense in the Royal College, Breda, the Netherlands.
Military career
He was promoted to the rank of major general on 1 January 2018 and the rank of lieutenant general on 30 April 2022. Upon his promotion to lieutenant general, he commanded the Internal Security Brigade for two years. Following his promotions, he assumed the command of the Military Academy for three years. He has occupied a number of high posts, the latest of which as Deputy Chief of the General Staff on 18 March 2021.{{Cite news |date=2022-04-28 |title=Syria names new defence minister -presidency |language=en |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/syria-names-new-defence-minister-presidency-2022-04-28/ |access-date=2022-05-05}}
Minister of Defense
On 28 April 2022, Presidential Decree No. 115 was issued naming General Ali Mahmoud Abbas as Minister of Defense replacing Ali Abdullah Ayyoub.{{Cite web|url=http://www.parliament.gov.sy/arabic/index.php?node=201&nid=22974&ref=tree&
| title = الرئيس الأسد يصدر مرسوماً بتسمية اللواء علي محمود عباس وزيراً للدفاع
| website = مجلس الشعب السوري
| accessdate = 2022-08-14
|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220121095222/http://parliament.gov.sy/arabic/index.php?node=201 |archive-date =21 January 2022 }} During the 2023 Homs drone strike Abbas was in attendance at the graduation ceremony but left before the attack.{{cite news |title=At least 100 killed in drone attack on Syrian military academy |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/drone-attack-homs-military-college-causes-large-number-casualties-syrian-state-2023-10-05/ |work=Reuters |date=5 October 2023 |language=en}} He later visited the Abdul-Qader Shaqfa Military Hospital where several of the casualties were brought.{{cite news |title=Funerals held in Syria for dozens of victims killed in deadliest attack in years |url=https://apnews.com/article/syria-homs-military-academy-attack-hospital-535afd2b12c0fd15de4005546bbd6d83 |work=Associated Press |date=6 October 2023 |language=en}}
=Sanctions=
In June 2023, Abbas was sanctioned by the UK for “the systematic use of sexual and gender-based violence against civilians.”{{Cite news |date=2023-06-19 |title=UK imposes sanctions on Syrian and Congolese officials accused of sexual violence |language=en |work=Financial Times |url=https://www.ft.com/content/db7c82cc-a48e-4751-b862-96c9abf0669b |access-date=2023-06-20}}
References
{{Reflist}}
{{SyriaDefenseMins}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Abbas, Ali Mahmoud}}
Category:People from Rif Dimashq Governorate
Category:Ministers of defense of Syria
Category:Syrian individuals subject to United Kingdom sanctions