Kremlin Refutes Claims of Divorce Filing by Assad’s Wife

A Kremlin spokesperson has stated that Asma al-Assad, the British-born spouse of deposed Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, is not pursuing a divorce. Turkish media outlets had previously indicated that Asma al-Assad intended to terminate her marriage and depart from Russia. She and her husband had received asylum there following the overthrow of the former president’s regime by a rebel coalition and its subsequent capture of Damascus. When questioned about these reports during a news conference call, Dmitry Peskov responded, “No, they do not correspond to reality.” Peskov further denied reports alleging that Assad was restricted to Moscow and that his property assets had been frozen. Russia maintained a steadfast alliance with the Assad regime, providing military assistance throughout the civil war. However, Turkish media reports on Sunday proposed that the Assads were residing under severe restrictions in the Russian capital, and that the former Syrian first lady had filed for divorce, expressing a desire to return to London. Mrs. Assad holds dual Syrian and British nationality; however, the UK foreign secretary had previously stated that her return to Britain would not be permitted. David Lammy, speaking in parliament earlier this month, declared: “I want it confirmed that she’s a sanctioned individual and is not welcome here in the UK.” He further stated that he would do “everything I can in my power” to ensure no member of the Assad family “finds a place in the UK”. A statement attributed to Bashar al-Assad last week indicated he had never intended to flee Syria, but was airlifted from a Russian military base at Moscow’s request. Asma al-Assad, 49, born in the UK to Syrian parents in 1975, spent her upbringing in Acton, west London. She relocated to Syria in 2000, at the age of 25, and married her husband only months after he assumed the presidency, succeeding his father. During her 24-year tenure as Syria’s first lady, Mrs. Assad garnered considerable attention from western media. A controversial 2011 Vogue profile referred to her as “a rose in the desert” and characterized her as “the freshest and most magnetic of first ladies”. This article has since been taken down from the Vogue website. Only a month later, Mrs. Assad drew criticism for her silence as her husband violently repressed pro-democracy campaigners at the outset of the Syrian civil war. The conflict ultimately claimed the lives of approximately half a million people, and her husband was accused of using chemical weapons against civilians. In 2016, Mrs. Assad informed Russian state-backed television that she had turned down an offer for safe passage out of the war-torn nation, choosing to remain by her husband’s side. She announced in 2018 that she was undergoing treatment for breast cancer and stated she had achieved a full recovery a year later. In May this year, the office of then-President Assad disclosed her diagnosis with leukaemia and the commencement of treatment for the illness. A statement indicated she would “temporarily withdraw” from public engagements. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content of external sites. Information regarding its approach to external linking is available.