9 March 2022; MEMO: The European Union placed sanctions on the two widows and three daughters of Syrian businessman, Mohammad Makhlouf, uncle of President Bashar Al Assad.
According to the EU Official Journal, the women are the widows of Mohammed Makhlouf, Hala Tarif Al-Maghout, and Ghada Adib Mhanna, and his three daughters Shalaa, Kinda and Sara.
Mohammed Makhlouf rose to power and became the money manager of the Al-Assad family during the war.
"On 12 September 2020, Mr. Mohammed Makhlouf passed away. Since his heirs are all members of the Makhlouf family, there is an inherent risk that the inherited assets will be used to support the activities of the Syrian regime and will flow directly into the regime's possession, potentially contributing to the regime's violent repression of the civilian population," the Official Journal published.
Sanctions on Syria were first introduced in 2011, in response to the violent repression of the civilian population by the Assad regime, the journal stated.
The restrictions also target companies and prominent businessmen benefiting from their ties with the regime and the war economy in Syria.
Restrictive measures include a freeze of the assets of the Central Bank of Syria held in the EU since 2011.
