The Financial Times confirmed in an investigation that Esma Assad, the wife of the Syrian regime president, heads the Syrian regime’s “secret economic council” and plays a key role in corruption in Syria.
The newspaper stated that Esma Assad interviewed 18 people familiar with the work of the Syrian regime, including company heads, aid workers and former government officials, who confirmed that he controlled the depleted Syrian economy.
The report emphasized that Esma worked with her husband Assad and her brother Mahir Assad to eliminate the traditional merchant class in Syria and found new ways to reap economic gains from the war.
The Financial Times pointed out that Esma Assad’s influence is visible in many sectors of the Syrian economy, including real estate, banking and telecommunications, noting that the presence is hidden by using fake companies of the Syrian regime’s partners.
In the report, it was stated that Esma Assad, while controlling the aid money flowing to Syria, especially after the earthquake, through these organizations, helped her own non-governmental organizations to create a wide patronage network for the Assad family.
It’s worth noting that the United Nations has said its partnerships with the “Syria Foundation” led by Esma Assad have become “very limited” and often necessary due to its “institutional role”.
