Ousted Dictator Bashar al-Assad’s Wife Asma 'Files for Divorce', Begs to Leave Russia After Syrian Coup
Assad's wife is said to have filed for divorce just weeks following their departure from Syria.
Dec. 23 2024, Published 3:00 p.m. ET
The wife of ousted Syrian president Bashar al-Assad has reportedly filed for divorce and is now begging to leave Russia after the two fled from Syria.
Asma al-Assad, who along with Bashar has been in Moscow since her disgraced husband's shocking fall, is said to now be looking for an out, with her eyes set on London, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Bashar al-Assad's wife, Asha, reportedly wants to leave her husband's side in Russia and head to London.
According to multiple media reports in Turkey, the British-born 48-year-old is seeking a divorce. Sources claim Asma applied to a Russian court for special permission to leave Moscow, and her request is currently under review by Russian authorities.
The Kremlin has denied Asma wants a divorce, claiming the reports "do not correspond to reality”.
Asma was born and raised in London, and moved to Syria in 2000, where she married Bashar.
The pair fled to Moscow after Bashar's brutal reign fell to rebels.
Bashar, 59, fled to Moscow earlier this month, after a rebel advance brought an end to his family’s brutal 50-year rule. Following his departure, the former president claimed his exit from Syria had not been planned, instead he was forced to leave after his position at a Russian-controlled airbase came “under intensified attack by drone strikes”.
After overthrowing Assad, rebel fighters liberated his horrifying Sednaya Military Prison — better known as the "Human Slaughterhouse".
Survivors of the nightmare prison revealed it was a place "carefully designed to humiliate, degrade, sicken, starve and ultimately kill those trapped inside".
According to prisoners, guards would torture and beat inmates as a form of punishment and degradation, which led some inmates to suffer life-long damage, disability, and in some cases, death.
Following Assad's exit, a "prisoner" was discovered by a CNN news crew alone in one of his prison cells. During the news broadcast, the "captured" man identified himself as Adel Gharbal to the network's Clarissa Ward and her crew.
Days later, fact-checking site Verify-Sy noted the man did not behave as someone who had been held captive, calling out Gharbal's appearance as well.
The Kremlin denied reports Asma is seeking a divorce.
The site, after speaking to locals in Homs, determined the man is actually named Salama Mohammad Salama, or Abu Hamza. They claim he was a first lieutenant in the Syrian Air Force Intelligence which served Assad under his brutal regime.
According to Verify-Sy, the man was "frequently stationed at a checkpoint in the area's western entrance, infamous for its abuses", and accused him of involvement in "theft, extortion and coercing residents into becoming informants".
Locals reveal Salama ended up behind bars more than a month prior to the now viral CNN footage due to a dispute with a higher-ranking officer.
Despite harsh backlash for CNN's footage, they stood by what they reported as a spokesperson for the network recently stated: "No one other than the CNN team was aware of our plans to visit the prison building featured in our report that day.
"... The decision to release the prisoner featured in our report was taken by the guard - a Syrian rebel. We reported the scene as it unfolded, including what the prisoner told us, with clear attribution."
The spokesperson did admit the "prisoner" may not have been truthful when it came to his real identity.
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Millions of Syrians have fled Assad's brutal and murderous regime since the civil war began in 2011.
They added: "We have subsequently been investigating his background and are aware that he may have given a false identity. We are continuing our reporting into this and the wider story."
