Pro-regime media sources confirmed that President Bashar al-Assad has extended the presidency of Major General "Riyad Abbas" to the Military Police in Syria.

Pages and accounts supporting Al-Assad circulated pictures of Major General "Riyad Habib Abbas", on the occasion of the extension of him by Bashar, including the account of "Haidara Bahjat Suleiman", son of the former ambassador of Al-Assad regime to Jordan.

And "With Justice" website indicates that Major General Abbas is one of the most prominent close associates of Al-Assad

Major General Riyad Habib Khirfan Abbas hails from the village of Ain Qita, in Beit Yashout sub-district, in Jableh region of Lattakia governorate.

He was an officer in the Convoy Company under the command of Major General Dhul-Himma Shalish, then rose to become Hafez al-Assad's personal companion.

He rose through the military ranks to become the commander of the Military Police in March 2018 and the Head of the Political Security Branch in Aleppo in 2013, where he was involved in committing widespread violations against civilians.

According to what Sham News Network monitored, he is responsible for the crimes of arbitrary arrest, enforced absence and torture against everyone suspected of having links to peaceful protests.