Ex‑Syrian general Bassam al‑Hassan, wanted for crimes against humanity, is receiving shelter and financial support from U.S. and Lebanese authorities, a BBC investigation reports.
Al‑Hassan, who oversaw Syria’s chemical weapons programme and served as a senior adviser to former President Bashar al‑Assad, fled the country after the regime’s fall in early 2024. Sources say the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) authorised his stay in Lebanon in exchange for information about the 2012 abduction of American journalist Austin Tice.
The BBC and NPR found that the U.S. and Lebanese security services – through an intermediary that channels payments to al‑Hassan – have provided him with a comfortable life. Al‑Hassan supplied details that Tice was executed on orders from Bashar al‑Assad, turning the search into a “planned operation” that included a secret meeting between U.S., Lebanese and Syrian officials.
Syrian government spokespeople say they want al‑Hassan brought back for trial; U.S. agencies insist they focus on securing Tice’s return and verifying his claims. Al‑Hassan’s testimonies have been questioned by investigators in light of a search that uncovered no physical evidence of Tice’s burial site.
Other regime insiders linked to the Tice case, such as Mohammad Makhlouf and Sakr Rustom, are also believed to be living abroad. The situation has raised diplomatic tensions, with the Tice family describing the U.S. as “aiding and abetting” a war criminal.
Image: ID card of Bassam al‑Hassan, showing his name in Arabic and Germanic script, redacted for privacy.
Alt: ID card showing Bassam al‑Hassan wearing a navy suit, blue shirt, and dark hair, accompanied by Arabic writing and a crest.
