Reports suggest ousted Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad has £55m in a London account, raising calls for asset seizure to aid Syria’s recovery
London: So, it turns out that Bashar al-Assad, the ousted Syrian dictator, has a whopping £55 million tucked away in a bank account in London. Can you believe it? This money is part of a larger stash of £163 million that he and his allies have hidden in UK banks.
Human rights groups are now stepping up, demanding that this money be seized and used to help Syria once a new government is in place. It’s about time, right? Back in 2011, court documents showed he had around £40 million in that account, but it’s grown since then thanks to interest.
Since the UK slapped sanctions on him for his brutal crackdown on protests, he hasn’t been able to touch those funds. Former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith is calling for the UK government to take action to support the victims of the Syrian conflict. He pointed out that while they’ve frozen over £163 million in assets, not a single penny has gone to help those in need.
In a twist, Assad’s in-laws recently fled their home in west London as the situation in Syria escalated. Fawaz Akhras and his wife left North Acton just last week, and they’re the parents of Asma al-Assad, who married Bashar back in 2000.
Meanwhile, back in Syria, thousands gathered outside a historic mosque in Damascus to celebrate Assad’s fall. It was a huge moment for the rebels, especially with groups like Hayat Tahrir al-Sham leading the charge. The world is definitely keeping an eye on what happens next, especially since this new regime is trying to clean up its image.