ISTANBUL (AA) - July 20, 2012 - Syrian National Security Chief Gen. Hisham Bekhtyar has died of wounds suffered in a bomb attack staged in Damascus on Wednesday.
Bekhtyar was a national security adviser to president Bashar al-Assad. He was director of the Syrian GID intelligence agency from 2001 to 2005, and has been the director of the Ba'ath Party Regional Command National Security Bureau (NSB).
In 2006, the United States Treasury Department announced that American citizens and organizations were forbidden from engaging in any transactions with Bekhtyar, for "significantly contributing to the Syrian Government's support for designated terrorist organizations."
In 2007, Bekhtyar was included in a list of Syrians forbidden to enter American territory.
