Muhammad Khayr Bey

Who is Muhammad Khayr Bey?

Muhammad Khayr Bey is a Syrian major general and the Deputy Vice President for Security Affairs of Syria. He is also one of several key advisers to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Khayr Bey was sanctioned by the US Department of the Treasury in 2007 for "undermining the sovereignty of Lebanon or its democratic processes and institutions." The sanctions called for freezing "any assets the designees may have located in the United States", and prohibited U.S. persons from engaging in transactions with these individuals. On May 2011, the EU also sanctioned Khayr Bey due to his involvement in violence against the civilian population.

Khayr Bey was born in the city of Hama, but hails from the Alawite village of al-Laqbah near Masyaf.