[4] He was commended by the historian al-Safadi for his valor, strategic planning against Ilkhanid offensives, care for the poor in his jurisdiction and hunting skills.
At the time, Mamluk strongmen, namely the emirs Salar and Baybars al-Jashnakir, held the reins of power, the sultan al-Nasir Muhammad playing a largely ceremonial role.
Aqqush considered himself equals to Baybars and Salar and once remarked that were it not for his "ablaq palace, green square, and beautiful river [in Damascus], I would not have left them alone to rejoice in the kingship of Egypt [capital of the sultanate]".
[8] Aqqush fled the Mamluk realm with his father-in-law Aydamur al-Zardakash and the high-ranking emir Qarasunqur in 1312 due to fears of punishment by Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad (r. 1310–1341).
Aqqush and Qarasunqur encouraged the last major Ilkhanid offensive against Mamluk Syria, which was the failed siege of the Euphrates fortress of al-Rahba in 1313.