Asma al-Assad: She grew up in London. Her husband ran Syria. Why has the UK never prosecuted her?

Around five years ago, British prosecutors reportedly decided against pursuing war crime charges against Asma al-Assad, the then First Lady of Syria, because she was unlikely to return to the UK.

Since then, the government led by her husband Bashar al-Assad has been overthrown, and Asma, who holds dual British and Syrian citizenship, is now living in exile in Moscow with him and their children.

While the family have barely been seen in public since their move, reports have appeared in the media that she is seeking to divorce Bashar and return to London, where she was born and raised.

Although the Kremlin has dismissed these rumours, questions remain, not only about the chance of her return, but also the possibility of a prosecution taking place if she did.

Dossiers accusing Asma of war crimes

According to documents sent to AnewZ by London's Metropolitan Police, the force's Counter Terrorism team received three referrals about war crimes allegations against Asma al-Assad between 2020 and 2021.

The first two referrals, made in July 2020 and January 2021, were submitted by the London law firm Guernica 37, now known as Outline Chambers, which works on international human rights cases.

Evidence submitted to the Met included speeches in which Asma al-Assad praised the mothers of dead Syrian soldiers, videos of her greeting female troops and interview extracts in which she said she supported her husband Bashar out of personal conviction, the Guardian reported in March 2021.

Speaking at the time, British international human rights lawyer Toby Cadman said he believed the evidence against Asma al-Assad amounted to "incitement, encourage[ment] and/or aiding and abetting of war crimes and crimes against humanity."

It is unclear who made the third and latest referral to the Metropolitan Police concerning Mrs. al-Assad, which was received in December 2021.

Outline Chambers did not reply to questions sent by AnewZ, including one asking whether the firm was still working on the Asma al-Assad case.

Insufficient grounds for investigation

The Metropolitan Police told AnewZ that officers from the force's war crimes team assessed the December 2021 referral in accordance with guidelines for war crimes and crimes against humanity from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), the UK agency that prosecutes criminal cases.

"Following that assessment, it was concluded that there were insufficient grounds to launch an investigation at this time and the referrer has been informed of this outcome," the Met said.

In July, the Observer reported that the CPS had previously received a dossier on Asma from the Met but had not pursued it, because it was considered unlikely that she would return to the UK.

AnewZ asked the CPS to confirm this, and to explain, if so, why a decision was made not to prosecute and who made the decision.

The CPS declined to answer and redirected all queries to the Metropolitan Police.

Holidays to the United Arab Emirates

In the meantime, Asma al-Assad remains conspicuously out of the public eye. The only time she has been seen in public with family since arriving in Moscow was at her daughter's graduation in June 2025.

According to the Observer, Asma and Bashar al-Assad have visited Dubai on multiple occasions since their exile in Russia, and the couple reportedly have residency in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

There have even been rumours that the couple have ambitions to move there permanently, although the Guardian reported in December 2025 that the UAE was "uncomfortable" hosting them.

The UAE also has an extradition agreement with the UK, and the two countries are allies.

Assad-era Syrian Colonel charged in UK 

In March, the Met brought charges against a high-ranking official who served during Assad's tenure as president and now lives in the UK.

Ex-Syrian Air Force Intelligence Department Colonel, Salem al-Salem, led a group tasked with quelling demonstrations in the suburbs of Damascus.

He was charged with seven offences, including three counts of murder as a crime against humanity, three counts of torture and one charge of conduct ancillary to murder.

However, in July, the 58-year-old, who suffers from motor neurone disease, was deemed unfit to plead or stand trial.

He will instead face a trial of fact hearing, which won’t take place until 2027, and under which he cannot be found guilty or be imprisoned.

Even in cases where the accused is in the UK, as with al-Salem, the obstacles to a case progressing can be significant.

The regime Asma al-Assad married into may have collapsed, and she may be living in a delicate exile, but with no apparent movement on her case from UK institutions since before Bashar's ouster, it remains unclear whether Mrs. al-Assad is any closer to facing charges in the country of her birth.

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