Ali Mamlouk, the National Security Advisor in the "Secretariat of the Presidency of the Republic," participated in the mourning ceremony for Syrian businessman and Chairman of the "Qatari Group," Baraa Ahmad Qatari, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike targeting his car near the Syrian-Lebanese border on July 15. The "Qatari Holding Group" published a video recording of the mourning ceremony on Monday, July 22, featuring several officials from the regime, including Mamlouk.
Alongside Mamlouk, former Interior Minister Mohammad al-Shaar, Health Minister Hassan al-Ghabash, and Minister of Religious Endowments Mohammad Abdul-Sattar al-Sayed also attended the mourning. Members of the Central Leadership of the "Baath" Party, the governor of Rural Damascus, officers from the Ministry of Interior, and members of the People's Council were also present.
Mamlouk's appearance at the mourning followed rumors circulating days earlier that the close associate of Bashar al-Assad had been hospitalized at "Al-Shami" Hospital in Damascus after suffering a heart attack, leading to speculation about his death due to the incident. These rumors, which spread via social media, arose shortly after the death of Luna al-Shibl, the special advisor to President Bashar al-Assad, who died in a car accident on a road leading to Damascus three days prior.
In April, Mamlouk appeared in Moscow during a meeting with Russian officials amid reports of his deteriorating health, assassination, or removal from the political and security decision-making circle in the Syrian regime earlier this year. In the same month, there were talks about appointing former Military Intelligence Chief Kifah Malham as the head of the "National Security Office" to succeed Mamlouk, who was named as an advisor, but this was not officially confirmed until his visit to Moscow, where he was introduced in his new official capacity.
Rumors surrounding the deaths of key figures in the Syrian regime are frequent; for instance, just days ago, there were reports of the death of former Vice President Farouk al-Sharaa, which later turned out to be untrue.
