“Refreshing medical studies”: new details about Assad’s life in Moscow

Assad fled with his family in December 2024, as Syrian rebels approached the capital. He fled with his family to Moscow after 14 years of a reign of terror in which about 620 thousand people were killed and massacred. After the fall of the dictator, the Syrian rebels discovered mass graves in which more than 100 thousand bodies were discovered.

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Now, a year into the brutal dictator’s exile, Russian and Syrian sources have leaked details to the Guardian that provide a rare glimpse into the lives of the Assad family “who lead a secluded and quiet life of luxury in Moscow and the United Arab Emirates.”

“Disconnected from the circles of the elite”

The family friend who maintains contact with them told the Guardian that “Assad is returning to his medical training as an ophthalmologist.” “He’s learning Russian and brushing up on his ophthalmology again,” the insider said. And he added, “It’s his passion; it’s clear he doesn’t need the money. Even before the war in Syria started, he used to regularly practice ophthalmology in Damascus.”

According to two other sources familiar with the details, the Assad family is expected to live in the luxury Rublyovka area of ​​the Russian elite. There the Assad family may encounter figures such as “former president of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych, who fled Kyiv in 2014 and lives in the area.”

The Guardian noted that despite the family’s luxurious residence, “they are cut off from the circles of the Syrian and Russian elite that they enjoyed in the past.”

A friend of the family told the Guardian that Assad “has no contact with the outside world” and added that he is in contact “only with a few people who were in his palace, such as Mansour Azzam (former minister of presidential affairs) and Vissar Ibrahim (Assad’s top financial confidante).”

A source close to the Kremlin said that the dictator is no longer relevant to Putin and the Russian elite. “Putin has little patience for leaders who lose their grip on power, and Assad is no longer seen as an influential figure or even as an interesting guest to invite to dinner.”

When the family moved to Moscow they mainly had to support Asma Assad, the former first lady of Syria who had leukemia. Although for a long time her condition was known to be serious, now in the Guardian it is written that Asma “recovered after experimental treatment under the supervision of the security services of Russia”.

Although Assad keeps his life under the radar, his children move on with their lives and integrate into Moscow’s elite.

Most recently, in June, the family was seen in their first public appearance without the dictator “at the graduation ceremony of daughter Zine al-Assad where she received a degree in international relations from MGIMO, the prestigious Moscow university where many members of Russia’s ruling class studied.”

In addition, the Guardian wrote that according to leaked flight records, “Assad’s children also frequently visit the United Arab Emirates, with Asma joining them on at least one of the trips.”