Atef Najib ( ar, عاطف نجيب; born 1964/1965) was a

Syrian Syrians ( ar, سُورِيُّون, ''Sūriyyīn'') are an Eastern Mediterranean ethnic group indigenous to the Levant. They share common Levantine Semitic roots. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend of both indig ...

officer and the political security chief in the city of

Daraa Daraa ( ar, دَرْعَا, Darʿā, Levantine Arabic: , also Darʿā, Dara’a, Deraa, Dera'a, Dera, Derʿā and Edrei; means "''fortress''", compare Dura-Europos) is a city in southwestern Syria, located about north of the border with Jord ...

, and is a first cousin of President Assad. He is known as being a catalyst for one of the flashpoints that ignited the Syrian civil war, when in 2011 he directed the abduction and torture of 15 boys which had written anti-Assad slogans on a public area in Daraa. His aggressive actions prompted non-violent protests by local inhabitants, and - after fire was opened by security forces at a protest march - the gradual start of armed resistance.

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