The cousin of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has been arrested for a road rage incident in which he allegedly shot and killed a senior air force colonel.
According to Syrian TV, Suleiman Hilal al-Assad was arrested Monday evening on a farm outside of Latakia, the western coastal city in which the incident allegedly took place.
The TV report said that Suleiman Hilal al-Assad was handed over to authorities who will investigate and institute legal proceedings against him.
The incident may prove troubling for Syria’s President, whose grip on power has been shaken by a civil war that has lasted more than four years, resulting in hundreds of thousands of deaths, the destruction of cities and an outpouring of refugees.
The colonel who was killed, Hassan al-Sheikh, is reported to be from the Alawite sect to which the President also belongs, and which is a foundation of his support. The Alawite community in Latakia reportedly protested angrily after the alleged road rage killing, calling for the cousin’s execution.
The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that Suleiman Hilal al-Assad shot al-Sheikh in front of his children at a traffic circle in the center of the city. The Observatory said the killing took place on August 6.