Wall Street Journal: Will Putin grant Bashar Assad asylum in Russia?
Wall Street Journal, citing Syrian and Arab security officials, reported that Bashar al Assad’s wife, Asma, and his three children fled to Russia last week, while Assad himself is said to have remained in his palace in Damascus until Friday, even as the sounds of gunfire approached the area surrounding the palace.
If Assad and his cancer-stricken wife fall into rebel hands, they are likely to face a swift death, Assad’s opponents are seeking revenge for the civil war that has killed hundreds of thousands of Syrians since 2011,” the newspaper added.
Wall Street Journal asked “Will Assad be able to escape in time? And if he does, where can he flee to? Will he follow his family to Russia?”
Some speaks about Spain, Marbella, may be the most attractive escape destination for Assad, as the Assad family owns a huge fortune there, including villas, companies, and jewelry worth hundreds of millions of Euros.
Bashar Assad’s uncle, Rifaat al Assad (87), the former vice president of Syria, uses the area to launder the family’s money.
The problem is that France has issued an international arrest warrant against Bashar al Assad for using chemical weapons against civilians.
This warrant is valid in all European Union countries, which means that the Spanish Costa del Sol is closed to Assad.
Assad’s closest option is to turn to Russia, a key ally that has helped him maintain power through years of airstrikes targeting homes, hospitals and even kindergartens, and the Assad family is said to have already arrived there,” Wall Street Journal added.
Wall Street Journal asked again: “But can Assad himself obtain asylum in Russia?”
In 2016, Putin was asked by reporters, personally if he would grant Assad asylum and he replied that the time hadn’t yet come.
“But it was certainly more difficult to grant asylum to Mr. Snowden (referring to the US CIA agent, Edward Snowden who fled to Russia) than to Assad,” Putin answered.
