An Alawite army in northwest Syria is forming ahead of declaring independence. Who are the candidates for supreme command?
Rami Makhlouf, cousin of the ousted Syrian President and a major Syrian tycoon, announced on Facebook the creation of a military body with senior Assad regime officer Suheil al-Hassan ("The Tiger") to defend the Alawite minority and support the coastal region.
Al-Hassan, a former major general, last commanded the 25th Special Forces Division under the 5th Corps, which was funded and trained by Russia and operated under Russian command from the Hmeimim Airbase.
In his post, Makhlouf claims he has an elite force of about 150,000 personnel, calling on Russia and the international community to support Syria’s Alawite coastal area. He criticized the new Damascus government for failing to protect the Alawite minority, citing a recent massacre in Homs.