The Daily Telegraph understands Asma al-Assad suffers from severe leukemia and has been placed in isolation by doctors, who have given her a “50/50” chance of survival.
The British wife of ousted Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad is being quarantined and cannot be in the same room as anyone else to prevent infection.
Her father, Fawaz Akhras, who has been caring for his daughter in Moscow, was described as “heartbroken” by sources with direct contact with the family.
He and his wife sought refuge in Moscow after Assad’s brutal regime lost its grip on power after a devastating 13-year civil war.
Syria’s president announced in May that the then-first lady had been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, an aggressive cancer of the bone marrow and blood.
She had previously been treated for breast cancer and announced in August 2019 that after a year of treatment she was “completely” free of the disease.
Her leukemia is believed to have returned after a period of remission.
“Asma is dying,” said a source who has been in direct contact with representatives of Asma’s family in recent weeks. “She can’t be in the same room with anyone [because of her condition]”.
Another source in touch with the family in Moscow said: “When leukemia relapses, it is malignant.
“She’s been 50/50 the last few weeks.”
Mrs Assad, 49, who holds dual Syrian and British citizenship, is believed to have flown to Moscow for treatment before the Kremlin persuaded her husband to flee in the face of a lightning-fast rebel offensive.
Her father, a respected Harley Street cardiologist, has been looking after her for much of the past six months, first in the United Arab Emirates and later in Moscow.
Bashar al-Assad has been Syria’s dictator since the turn of the century – MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP via Getty Images
It was previously reported that she was tired of the restrictions placed on her in Moscow and was seeking treatment in London and wanted a divorce.
Assad’s family has not commented on the reports, although the Kremlin later denied that she was trying to separate from her husband.
This week, shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick said “it would be an insult to the millions of Assad’s victims if his wife returned to the UK and lived a life of luxury”.
The Telegraph can also reveal the source of divorce reports. It is understood that Turkish journalists have been briefed by Russian diplomats.
Although Russia has provided Assad with extensive military and economic support since 2015, allowing him to maintain his grip on power, the personal relationship between Putin and Assad is said to have cooled in recent months.
The two leaders are said to remain wary of each other, with Moscow frustrated by Assad’s refusal to make reforms or engage with opposition groups.
Asma al-Assad and her family in Syria – photojournalist
Analysts and observers believe Assad’s defeat has now become an embarrassment to Putin, despite Russia’s security assurances.
His defeat also means Moscow risks losing the port of Tartus and several military bases in Syria that have become the cornerstone of Russian operations in the Mediterranean and Africa.
Mrs Assad grew up in Acton, west London, with her father, mother Sahar, a former diplomat at the Syrian embassy, and her brothers Feras, 46, and Eyad, 44, now Also a doctor.
She gained a first in computer science at King’s College London and entered investment banking before starting dating Assad in 1992.
Assad was not expected to succeed his father at the time, but after his brother Basel died in a car accident in 1996, he became the heir apparent and became president in 2000.
The couple’s ostensibly reformist and West-friendly image was shattered in 2011 when Assad’s brutal crackdown on pro-democracy protests plunged the country into war.
UK government insists Asma al-Assad or any member of his family is not welcome
Mrs Assad has been sanctioned for supporting her husband, and the British Foreign Secretary said this month that he did not want to see her return to the UK.
David Lammy said: “I want confirmation that she is a sanctioned person and is persona non grata in the UK.”
He added that he would “do whatever I can” to ensure that any member of the Assad family “finds a place in the UK”.
Assad and his wife have three children: Hafez, a PhD student, Zein and Karim. Their extended family reunited with them in Moscow.
When his father was overthrown, Hafez was already in Moscow, studying mathematics at Moscow State University.
At the end of November, the 22-year-old defended his thesis in Russian, which focused on algebraic number theory and the study of polynomials.
In his closing speech, he expressed his gratitude to the “martyrs of the fatherland”, especially those of the Syrian army.
