Asma al-Assad
| Asma al-Assad أسماء الأسد |
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Asma al-Assad in 2003
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| First Lady of Syria | |
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Assumed office December 2000 |
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| Preceded by | Anisa Makhlouf |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Asma Akhras 11 August 1975 London, England |
| Nationality | British, Syrian |
| Spouse(s) | Bashar al-Assad (m. 2000) |
| Relations | Fawaz Akhras (father) |
| Children | 3 |
| Alma mater | King's College London (B.Sc) |
Asma al-Assad (Arabic: أسماء الأسد, Levantine pronunciation: [ʔasˈmaːʔ elˈʔasad]; née Akhras, Arabic: أسماء فواز الأخرس: [ˈʔasma fawˈwaːz elˈʔaxras]; born 11 August 1975) is the First Lady of Syria. Born in London to Syrian parents, she is married to the 19th and current President of Syria, Bashar al-Assad.
Born and raised in the United Kingdom, Assad graduated from King's College London in 1996 with a bachelor's degree in computer science and French literature. She had a career in investment banking and was set to begin an MBA at Harvard University when she married Bashar al-Assad in December 2000.
She quit her investment banking job following the wedding and remained in Syria, where their three children were born. As First Lady she played a major role in implementing governmental organisations involved with social and economic development throughout the country as part of a reform initiative under Bashar's governance which was halted due to the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War.
As a result of the ongoing Civil War, Assad is subject to economic sanctions relating to high-level Syrian government officials, making it illegal in the European Union (EU) to provide her with certain material assistance, for her to obtain certain products, and curtailing her ability to travel within the EU, excluding the United Kingdom where she is a citizen.
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