The uncle of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is to stand trial in France on charges of building a property empire in the country using funds from Syrian state coffers, legal sources said Wednesday (April 17th).

An investigating magistrate ordered Rifaat al-Assad to stand trial for organised money laundering in building the 90 million euro ($102 million) property portfolio in France, according to the order for the trial seen by AFP.

A date for the trial has not yet been set.

Al-Assad, dubbed the "Butcher of Hama" for allegedly commanding the troops that suppressed a 1982 uprising in central Syria, has been under investigation in France since 2014.

In a written decision dated March 8th, the office of the financial crimes prosecutor called for al-Assad to stand trial for laundering the proceeds of aggravated tax fraud and embezzling Syrian state funds, among other charges.

Al-Assad denies the charges.

Formerly Syria's vice-president, al-Assad left Syria in 1984 after mounting a failed coup against his brother, Hafez al-Assad.

His reported French fortune includes two Paris townhouses, one measuring a vast 3,000 square metres, as well as a stud farm and a chateau near the French capital and 7,300 square metres of office space in Lyon.

He and his family also own over 500 properties in Spain. These were seized by authorities in 2017.