Position
Former Brigadier General in Syrian Air Force Intelligence; former Head of the Daraa Section / Branch of Air Force Intelligence. Syrian Memory lists him as former head of the Daraa section in the Southern Region Branch of Air Force Intelligence.
Association
Syrian regime security apparatus; Air Force Intelligence Directorate, Southern Region Branch, Special Missions Branch. He is also reported to have coordinated with Iranian intelligence and Hezbollah-linked networks.
Loyalty
Aligned with the Assad regime and described as politically loyal to the regime. Reports also portray him as close to the Iranian/Hezbollah camp in southern Syria.
Most Notorious Crimes
- Alleged involvement in the 2013 Eastern Ghouta chemical attack.
- Accused of torture, enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests, and killings during his service in Air Force Intelligence.
- Alleged supervision of a 2021 ambush near al-Musayfirah/al-Jizah in Daraa that killed six former revolutionary-group members; Air Force Intelligence reportedly withheld the bodies.
- Linked to assassination networks in Daraa, including groups reportedly taking direct orders from him.
- Reported protection of Captagon manufacturing and smuggling operations in Daraa.
Profile
Khardal Ahmad Dayyoub is a Syrian Air Force Intelligence officer who rose through the Southern Region Branch after 2013, with his work reportedly centered in Eastern Ghouta under senior Air Force Intelligence command. He later moved into Daraa, where he held senior roles in the Special Missions and Daraa sections and was promoted to brigadier general in 2021.
His name is tied to serious allegations including torture, enforced disappearance, assassinations of former opposition members, coordination with Iranian intelligence and Hezbollah, and involvement in the Eastern Ghouta chemical attack. In Daraa, open-source reporting also links his branch to assassination cells and drug-smuggling protection networks.
Identity
- Name: Khardal Ahmad Dayyoub / Khardal Dayoub
- Arabic: خردل أحمد ديوب / خردل ديوب
- Nationality: Syrian
- Birth: Syrian Memory lists 1970, village of Khreibeh, Tartus Governorate.
- Rank: Brigadier General.
Career Timeline, Crimes & Responsibility
- 1992: Graduated as a lieutenant and served in the 55th Air Defense Brigade.
- 2013: Transferred to the Southern Region Branch of Air Force Intelligence; worked mainly in Eastern Ghouta.
- 2018–2021: Assigned to Daraa-related Air Force Intelligence roles; later became head of the Daraa section.
- 2021: Accused of responsibility for an ambush that killed six former opposition-linked individuals in Daraa.
- 2022–2023: Reporting linked his Daraa branch to assassination networks and Captagon smuggling protection.
- May 2024: Appointed head of training in Air Force Intelligence until the fall of the Assad regime.
- May 5, 2026: Arrested in Tartus after hiding there following the regime’s fall.
Legal Proceedings
Reportedly arrested by Syrian Interior Ministry / security forces in May 2026 on accusations including involvement in the 2013 chemical attack and other abuses. No final conviction is publicly documented yet.
Sanctions
I did not find a confirmed EU, UK, U.S., or Canadian sanctions listing specifically for Khardal Ahmad Dayyoub in the sources reviewed.
Current Status / Whereabouts
Reportedly arrested in Tartus on May 5, 2026 after hiding there following the fall of the Assad regime; current detention/prosecution status remains unclear in open sources.