Asma al Assad files for divorce
A potted history of the mass murderers accomplice
Assad’s accomplice has filed for divorce and now wants to come back to the UK to live off her ill-gotten gains. But who is she?
A potted history of Asma al Assad
On the run after the collapse of her husband Bashar Al Assad's dynasty, the former First Lady of Syria was once called 'A Rose in the Desert' but now she is a figure of reviled hatred likened to Lady Macbeth.
Born in London in 1975, to Fawaz Akhras a successful cardiologist at the private Cromwell Hospital and her mother Sahar a senior Syrian diplomat, she was sent to Queen's College, in Marylebone where fees are almost £9,000 a term.
From there she graduated at King's College London in 1996 with a degree in computer science and French literature and embarked upon a career in investment banking at major companies including Deutsche Bank and JPMorgan.
Pictured is the house of the Ahkras family in West London. The home of Mrs Assad's parents in West London, is a spacious terrace, with a brown stone front and white Edwardian glass panelled bay windows. On neighbouring driveways rows of BMWs, Mercedes and Four by Four cars line up.
Four years later she married Assad, now 59, in Syria in the same year he took over control of the country, after the death of his father, Hafez al-Assad
During the conflict the couple are understood to have drifted apart, but with Assad's mother dying in 2016 and Mrs Assad's diagnosis of breast cancer in 2018, she was repositioned at the heart of the regime's economy. But this new role was nothing more than a 'shakedown' operation of the country's middle class merchants and businessmen.
Along with her husband, Assad was considered to be one of the "main economic players" in Syria, controlling large parts of Syrian business sectors, banking, telecommunications, real estate and maritime industries.
She orchestrated a secretive labyrinth of committees and policies, run by her henchman, which controlled everything from access to the internet to subsided food rations. Her murderous empire extended to the distribution of foreign aid - effectively she controlled who got what when. Her executive role in the murderous Syrian regimes financial policy, earned her the widespread, unenviable nickname of 'Lady Macbeth' from rebels and commentators alike.
With her role within Assad's dictatorship growing, she was unable to maintain her early image of the liberated woman operating at the heart of power in a Muslim country. She became one and the same with the Syrian regime's terrible suppression of its people.
As a result of the ongoing Syrian civil war, a conflict which began in March 2011, Assad was subject to economic sanctions relating to high-level Syrian government officials, making it illegal in the European Union (EU) to provide her with material and financial assistance, for her to obtain certain products, and curtailing her ability to travel within the EU.
In the UK, she was a part of a preliminary inquiry within the War Crimes unit of the Metropolitan Police with allegations involving the "systematic approach to the torture and murder of civilians, including with the use of chemical weapons" and incitement of terrorist acts.
Timeline of evil
There was turbulence in the Assad marriage. In March 2012, CNN published flirtatious emails that Bashar had received from a number of women. For a year and half, Asma had a strained relationship with her husband. Then her father brokered a deal between her and her husband: she would take on a greater role, build a business empire with her family, and start to assume the role of first lady.
This marked the beginning of her rise to power and increasing visibility. She started having near daily appearances on TV. Her father, a key figure in UK-Syrian relations, played the role of the regime’s publicist. He organized the visit of the archbishop of Canterbury to Syria.
On 23 March 2012, the European Union froze her assets and placed a travel ban on her and President Bashar al-Assad's other close family members as part of escalating sanctions against the Syrian government. Assad remained able to travel to the UK because of her British citizenship.
Fashion bible Vogue called her the "Desert Rose". But her reputation crumbled when she stood by her husband's side as he cracked down on anti-government protests that erupted in 2011, turning into full-scale civil war in June 2012.
She was heavily criticised for remaining silent during the violence and was dubbed "Marie Antoinette" and "predator in chief". Detractors also accused her of enriching herself through the Syria Trust for Development, a charity she founded that centralises most of the funding coming from abroad. She and her husband also took charge of many parts of the Syrian economy using frontmen, according to news site Syria Report.
In 2012 The Guardian reported that William Hague, the foreign secretary, confirmed that Assad would be able to visit her parents, who still live in London, but thought she was unlikely to. And despite the asset freeze, British government sources said Assad would still be able to use the house she owns in London. There would be no attempt to strip her of her British nationality.
"British passport-holders have a right of entry to the UK. But given we are imposing an asset freeze on all of these individuals and a travel ban on other members of the same family or regime, we are not expecting Mrs Assad to try and travel to the UK at present," Hague said after a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels.
In 2012, A cache of emails from the Assad regime recently leaked to the Guardian, exposed a culture of high-living, luxury shopping sprees in London and Paris at the same time as the regime has turned its artillery indiscriminately on Homs and other heavily populated urban areas.
The curbs on her ability to shop in London may be less comprehensive than previously thought.
The assets freeze means that any UK or EU bank accounts and credit cards would be frozen. But British officials said that under Home Office rules those blacklisted would be barred from purchasing "basic goods" but would still be able to shop for "luxury items". The criteria distinguishing basic from luxury goods was not clear.
In 2020 the United States imposed sanctions on Asma al-Assad, her parents and two brothers, with then-secretary of state Mike Pompeo describing her as "one of Syria's most notorious war profiteers".
In 2020, observers noted that Assad had begun to extend her influence within the Syrian government. Her charity Syria Trust for Development had become active again, and she began to move members of said body into more influential positions, including the election of activists from the charity and development sector during the 2020 Syrian parliamentary election. Nine activists consequently won seats in the Syrian parliament, all of whom were connected to her "Syrian Trust and Development" charity.
As a result, she gained a political foothold in the parliament, indicating at the time that she was “likely to continue to play a key role in the Syrian political arena." Tensions with Rami Makhlouf led him to accuse Assad of stealing "Alawite money" and he later warned her husband Bashar al-Assad of potential discontent amongst the Alawite elites.
In March 2021, the War Crimes unit of London's Metropolitan Police opened an investigation into allegations that Assad incited and encouraged terrorist acts during the war.[8] It was reported that Assad pursued talks with powerful Alawite figures to portray herself as a more amenable alternative in case of Bashar al-Assad's resignation.
2024:
On 21 May 2024, the Syrian presidency announced that Assad had been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, following the emergence of several symptoms and clinical signs, which would force her to refrain from direct work and participation in events as part of the treatment plan.
In late November 2024, she fled Syria to Russia alongside her three children, following the 2024 Syrian opposition offensives and preceding the ousting of her husband.[68] Despite Assad retaining British citizenship, UK foreign secretary David Lammy said that she was no longer welcome in the country, citing sanctions against her.
"I've seen mentioned in the last few days, Asma Assad (is) potentially someone with UK citizenship that might attempt to come into our country, and I want it confirmed that she's a sanctioned individual and is not welcome here in the UK," he told parliament. Per France24.com
Asma al-Assad had her UK assets frozen in March 2012 amid growing protests against her husband's rule, as part of a European sanction programme that London maintained after Brexit. The UK has previously stripped citizens of their nationality for joining the Islamic State group, Bader Mousa Al-Saif, researcher at the Chatham House think tank, told AFP. "If that could be happening to an unknown in an extremist camp, I think the same, if not more, warrants for the case of Asma al-Assad," he added.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that it was "far too early" to discuss such a measure, while minister Pat McFadden told the BBC "we have had no contact" with the former first lady.
Breaking: 21 December 2024,
Asma al-Assad, the wife of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, has filed for divorce. She wants to leave Moscow and move to London.
This was reported by CNN Türk , citing sources close to the Assad family. According to them, the wife of the ousted Syrian president does not like the living conditions in Moscow.
Bashar al-Assad and his family moved to Russia after losing control of Damascus. However, sources say Asma al-Assad has expressed dissatisfaction with living conditions in Moscow.
Asma al Assad is allegedly trying to divorce Bashar al Assad with the view to relocating back to mama and papa in London she probably misses flushing toilets and shopping at Harrods again.
The Assad women who need to be brought to justice.
Asma al-Assad
The leaked emails painted a portrait of a woman comfortable with the trappings of office. She ordered luxury goods as Syria burned in chaos and seems very loyal to her husband.
Anisa Makhlouf
The widow of the former Syrian President Hafez al-Assad, and mother of Bashar al-Assad. She was the Syrian First Lady from 1971 to 2000 and died aged 86 on February 16, 2016. Although she was known to keep a low profile, Makhlouf is believed to have the 'final say' on all matters within the Assad family.
The matriarch who maintains influence over the clan, 12 years after the death of her husband, Hafez al-Assad. Helped convince regime chiefs that the uprising is an Islamist coup.
Bushra al-Assad
Bushra upset the Assad clan when she eloped 13 years ago to marry Assef Shawkat, a divorced father 10 years her senior. Influential behind the scenes, but eschews the spotlight.
Manal al-Assad
The wife of the youngest Assad brother, Maher, who is reputed to be the regime's enforcer. The couple have two children and enjoy a life of privilege in Damascus.
References and sources:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/mar/23/assads-eu-sanctions-asma-bashar-syria
https://www.yahoo.com/news/russia-not-come-assad-rescue-172820336.html
https://edition.cnn.com/2012/03/21/world/meast/syria-assad-emails/index.html
https://www.mei.edu/publications/assad-makhlouf-spat-complicated-family-affair
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Following on from rumours of Assad seeking a divorce and wanting to return to London, I heard (if memory serves) that the Foreign Secretary's off the record response was a flat no. She fully deserves the moniker of Lady Macbeth! A thoroughly absorbing read Beefy!