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Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa ordered civil servants with luxury cars to hand over the keys or face being investigated for illicit gains at his former rebel base during a meeting, which hasn't been reported before, Reuters reported.
The meeting took place on Aug. 30 at Sharaa's former headquarters in Idlib province in northwestern Syria, far from his official presidential offices in Damascus.
Two attendees, as well as two civil servants, briefed on the address confirmed that a few keys were handed in as people filed out at the end.
"I didn't know the salaries the government pays were this high!" Sharaa joked after more than 100 loyalists arrived, many pulling up in luxury SUVs.
"The message delivered to loyalists points to a critical challenge facing the 43-year-old president," the report said.
Syria's Ministry of Information told Reuters that Sharaa had arranged a "friendly, informal meeting" in Idlib with former commanders, officials, and other notables, which touched on political and security challenges as well as the need to change the "investment culture established by the former regime".
"He stressed that he would not tolerate any suspicion of corruption among state employees," the ministry said.
The report mentioned the sharaa's balancing act that he is trying to do.
Sharaa ordered the shutdown of his elder brother Jamal’s office in August and instructed government entities not to deal with him, the sources said.
Shortly after closing Jamal's office, Sharaa held a meeting with family members, including his 79-year-old father, warning them against exploiting the family name for personal gain, according to a relative who attended the meeting.
Jamal is a businessman who has fallen foul of Sharaa's fledgling anti-corruption drive, according to six people familiar with the matter, including government officials and business figures.
Following Sharaa's rise to power, Jamal set up an office in the capital Damascus from where he ran various ventures, including import-export and tourism businesses, they said.
He became a common sight in upmarket hotel lobbies and restaurants, to which he was driven in a black Mercedes S-class saloon with tinted windows and no license plates.
The decision concerned allegations that Jamal had used his family link to the president to set up dozens of meetings with government and business figures to advance his personal interests, they said.
Syria's information ministry confirmed the office had been closed down. "Jamal al-Sharaa was not permitted to work as an investment or commercial entity," it told Reuters.
"The presidency has clarified since the formation of the government that Jamal al-Sharaa did not hold any official position."
The ministry didn't say whether, or what, specific charges authorities had been levelled against the president's brother.
Despite President Sharaa’s tough anti-corruption rhetoric, business leaders say bribery remains entrenched in post-Assad Syria.
One industrialist and two senior factory managers said they had been forced to pay cash to well-connected intermediaries, with no receipt or formal documentation, to keep their businesses running or secure the release of employees detained over alleged past ties to the Assad regime.
One said he paid $100,000 for the release of a worker, only to be told he would have to fork out another $100,000 if he wanted the employee to be allowed to resume work.
Another said he paid $25,000 to get an employee released.
Syrian officials deny widespread corruption but confirmed that some employees suspected of taking bribes have been referred for investigation.
A new illicit-gains committee and sovereign wealth fund managing seized Assad-era assets are also under scrutiny.
Two lawyers working for the fund have been arrested over alleged graft, and members of the anti-corruption committee have been questioned on suspicion of wrongdoing.
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