Asma al-Assad has not filed for divorce from Bashar al-Assad, says Kremlin
A spokesperson from the Kremlin has announced that the British-born spouse of overthrown Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad is not pursuing a divorce.
Turkish media reports indicated that Asma al-Assad was considering ending her marriage and relocating from Russia, where she and her husband were given asylum following the overthrow of the former president's regime by a coalition of rebels that seized control of Damascus.
When questioned about the news reports during a conference call, Dmitry Peskov responded, "No, that information is not accurate."
He also refuted claims that Assad had been restricted to Moscow and that his real estate holdings had been frozen.
Russia strongly supported the Assad government and provided military assistance throughout the civil war.
However, Turkish media reports on Sunday indicated that the Assads were facing significant limitations while residing in Moscow. Additionally, it was reported that the former first lady of Syria has initiated divorce proceedings and wishes to move back to London.
Mrs. Assad holds dual nationality as both Syrian and British, but the UK foreign secretary has previously stated that she will not be permitted to come back to the UK.
In a recent address to Parliament, David Lammy stated, "I want to clarify that she is on the sanctions list and is not allowed to enter the UK."
He stated that he would do "everything possible" to make sure that no member of the Assad family is able to settle in the UK.
Last week, Bashar al-Assad claimed that he never planned to leave Syria; instead, he stated that he was evacuated by air from a Russian military base at the request of Moscow.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Asma tied the knot with Bashar al-Assad roughly five months after he assumed the presidency of Syria in 2000.
Asma al-Assad, 49, was born in 1975 in the United Kingdom to Syrian parents and spent her childhood in Acton, located in west London.
In 2000, at the age of 25, she relocated to Syria and became married to her husband only a few months after he took over the presidency from his father.
During her 24 years as the first lady of Syria, Mrs. Assad attracted a lot of interest from the Western media.
A 2011 Vogue article, which stirred up some debate, referred to her as "a rose in the desert" and portrayed her as "the most vibrant and captivating of first ladies." This piece has since been taken down from the Vogue website.
Only a month later, Mrs. Assad faced backlash for not speaking out as her husband brutally suppressed pro-democracy activists at the onset of the Syrian civil war.
The ongoing conflict resulted in the deaths of approximately 500,000 individuals, and her husband faced allegations of employing chemical weapons against non-combatants.
In 2016, Mrs. Assad stated in an interview with Russian state television that she had declined an offer for a safe escape from their war-ravaged country because she wanted to be by her husband's side.
In 2018, she revealed that she was undergoing treatment for breast cancer and stated that she had completely recovered a year later.
Her office announced that she was diagnosed with leukemia and started receiving treatment for it in May of this year during President Assad's term.
A statement indicated that she would be stepping back from public activities for a while.
