In her final email, part of a trove obtained by The Guardian, she appeared to
offer the Assad family sanctuary in Qatar. “I honestly think that this
is a good opportunity to leave and re-start a normal life – it can’t be easy
on the children, it can’t be easy on you,” she writes.
“I only pray that you will convince the president to take this as an
opportunity to exit without having to face charges – I am sure you have many
places to turn to, including Doha.”
There is no sign of a response to this final email, dated 30 January,
suggesting that Sheikha Mayassa misjudged Mrs Assad’s mood and that Syria’s
first lady remained stubbornly loyal to her husband.
These messages were exchanged despite the fact that Qatar closed its embassy
in Syria and recalled its ambassador on 17 July last year. While having no
formal diplomatic ties with Damascus, Qatar’s ruling family kept this
channel to Syria with the apparent aim of using Mrs Assad, 36, to ease her
husband out of power and into exile.
“The Assads had often been in Qatar and they had established channels of
communication with the al-Thanis [Qatar’s royal family],” said Kristian
Coates Ulrichsen, a Gulf specialist at the Londo School of Economics. “This
was clearly an attempt to find a backchannel to communicate and try and
resolve the issue under the table.”
Other emails betray the irony that Mrs Assad spent much of her time shopping
online, notably from Harrods, which is effectively owned by the Qatar. While
one member of the Qatari royal family was sending emails to Mrs Assad, the
country’s government has openly backed the cause of Syria’s rebels, who seek
her husband’s downfall.
Sheikha Mayassa is a trusted member of the Qatari royal family and
increasingly its public face. As chairman of Qatar’s National Foundation of
Museums, she has been tasked with stocking the country with art. Last month,
it was disclosed that Qatar bought Cezanne’s painting The Art Players for
£160 million, a record price.
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