Assad regime falls: Rebels claim palace as fortune revealed

Rebels entered Damascus, and their leaders announced the collapse of Bashar al-Assad's regime on Sunday. The president fled Damascus, and as of Saturday evening, the whereabouts of the ousted president are unknown. A Reuters source reported that the plane he might have been on disappeared from radar and may have been shot down.

Bashar al-Assad has left his position as the president of the country. Syria - Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which had supported the regime in Damascus for years, reported on Sunday. On Saturday, "The Telegraph" reported that Assad’s family had left the country and is now on Russian Federation territory.

Rebel forces stormed Bashar al-Assad's abandoned palace on Sunday. Videos and photos of the autocrat's deserted fortune are being posted on social media.

In 2022, the US State Department published a report for Congress estimating the assets of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and eight of his family members, with whom he has connections, creating a wide network.

The document covers the official assets and wealth of nine family members, including Bashar al-Assad himself, his wife Asma, brother Maher, sister Bushra, and cousins – Rami and Ihab Makhlouf, as well as uncle Rifaat and cousins Dhu al-Himma and Riad Shalisha.

At that time, the Assad family's net worth was estimated at 1 to 2 billion dollars.

These are approximate figures and likely significantly understated. As indicated by the State Department, Bashar al-Assad and his relatives hold various assets, bank accounts, real estate, and businesses, which they hide under false names.

These assets are likely located outside Syria, hidden under shell institutions and managed by others to circumvent international sanctions. Some of them are reportedly used to launder money obtained from illegal economic activities, including smuggling, arms trafficking, drug trafficking, and protection rackets.

According to the State Department report, the Assad marriage had extensive ties "with Syria’s largest economic players, using their companies to launder money from illicit activities and funnel funds to the regime. These networks penetrate all sectors of the Syrian economy."

According to American officials, Syrian First Lady Asma al-Assad is behind a network of entities through which she exerts influence on the Syrian economy.

According to the documents, she had a significant impact on the economic committee managing the ongoing economic crisis in Syria.

"According to open-source reporting, this committee makes decisions regarding food and fuel subsidies, trade, and currency issues. Asma has expanded her influence in the non-profit and telecommunications sectors in recent years. Asma reportedly continues to exert influence over the Syria Trust for Development, which she founded in 2001, and directs funding to charity and humanitarian initiatives in regime areas in Syria," the report states.

The document also reveals Asma's other business connections. In 2019, she reportedly took over control (from Bashar al-Assad's cousin Rami Makhlouf) of the Al Bustan Charity foundation.

In 2021, officials close to Asma from the Presidential Palace were reportedly appointed to the board of Syriatel, Syria's largest telecommunications company, which was owned by Makhlouf, the report enumerates. In 2019, Asma also established a telecommunications company, Emma Tel, with Syrian businessman Khodr Taher Bin Alim.