Education sponsor? Assad
Photo: AFP
'Assad sponsored aide's PhD in Britain'
New WikiLeaks hoard reveals that Syrian president sponsored PhD for female aide with whom he has close relationship and who even put his picture up on her wall
WikiLeaks has revealed that one of Britain's leading universities is set to award a prestigious degree to a key aide of Syrian dictator Bashar Assad,
who had been paying for her studies.
Britain's Daily Mail reported on Sunday that Lamis Omar has been studying for a doctorate at Durham, and is likely to receive her PhD in September.
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Emails obtained by the Wikileaks website, in what has now become known as "Assad-leaks" suggest that Omar enjoys a close friendship with Assad.
Poetry and jokes as bloodshed continues (Photo: AFP)
Fellow students say she had a large picture of the dictator on the wall of her home in the university grounds.
While the bloodshed in Syria continues, the over 800 email exchanges between the pair draw a picture of a world of poetry and jokes.
They appear to have a close friendship, in which he buys her gifts and she repeatedly says that she ‘loves’ him. In the emails she refers to Assad, who has been married to British-born Asma, 37, for 12 years, as the ‘sponsor’ of her course.
The emails were among a tranche of 2.5 million obtained by Wikileaks. They were apparently written by Syrian officials and politicians, as well as Assad himself. The documents, which for the most part are written in English, reveal that Ms Omar’s official role was to translate Assad’s speeches.
Officials at Durham University refused to say whether the institution has accepted money from the Assad regime in tuition fees.
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