Tuesday, December 10, 2024

ITN Archive: When Britain Welcomed Bashar al-Assad - Tony Blair Courts Syrian President Ahead of Iraq War (2002)

Dec 9, 2024 | Between 15 and 18 December 2002, Syrian president Bashar al-Assad and his wife, Syrian first lady Asma al-Assad, visited London. British Prime Minister Tony Blair had decided to publically engage the Assad regime in the hope of firming up Syrian support for Britain's stance on issues including the Middle East peace process, international terrorism, and action against Saddam Hussein's Iraq. Assad's visit included receptions with Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, and Queen Elizabeth II. This compilation features raw footage as well as broadcast reports on the broader political context of the visit.


What now for Asma al-Assad – the former British private schoolgirl turned international pariah: The former first lady was once seen as a symbol of female empowerment – Syria’s equivalent of Princess Diana. Now she’s in exile in Russia »

They ‘didn’t look the type’: how the media was fooled by Bashar and Asma al-Assad: Some journalists underestimated the threat of the brutal president, while his first lady was glamorised in a Vogue feature »

Gushing Vogue profile of ousted Syrian president Bashar Al Assad's wife Asma resurfaces after being wiped from their website »

LE FIGARO :

Asma el-Assad : le double visage glaçant d’une épouse de dictateur : PORTRAIT - L’épouse du dictateur syrien renversé ce dimanche par la coalition rebelle aurait trouvé refuge à Moscou avec sa famille. Longtemps visage glamour et moderne de la Syrie, elle est devenue, au fil des années, le symbole d’un régime répressif. »

Syrie: l'épouse du président Bachar al-Assad atteinte de leucémie : Selon un communiqué de la présidence, Asma, l’épouse du chef de l’État syrien Bachar al-Assad, qui s’était rétablie d’un cancer du sein, a été diagnostiquée d’une leucémie. Elle va subir un traitement. »

BILD:

Frau Assad war früher bei der Deutschen Bank: Asma al-Assad sollte den Fortschritt im Land verkörpern – und zeigte im Krieg gegen das eigene Volk ihr wahres Gesicht »