Iraq denies claims of Maher al-Assad's presence in country

Iraq's Ministry of Interior has dismissed reports claiming that Maher al-Assad, the brother of ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, is currently in Iraq.

Miqdad Miri, spokesperson for the Ministry, refuted the rumours on December 16, stating that the claims circulating on social media were "untrue," Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

The reports, which emerged, alleged that Maher al-Assad had fled Syria and was residing in Iraq, particularly in the Sulaimani province of the Kurdistan Region. The rumours also suggested that he was being hosted by Bafel Talabani, leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). However, authorities in the Kurdistan Region have yet to comment on these claims.

In a related development, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which controls northeast Syria, also denied the reports. The SDF, which has a positive relationship with the PUK, labelled the claims as “completely false,” attributing them to a broader campaign aimed at discrediting their forces and the people of northern and eastern Syria.

To recall, the Assad family fled Syria after a swift rebel offensive led by Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which resulted in the collapse of the Syrian regime and the end of over 50 years of Baathist rule. Following the fall of Damascus, Russian forces evacuated Assad and his family, granting them asylum in Moscow.

In his first statement since the regime's collapse, Bashar al-Assad confirmed that his departure was not planned and that Russia had arranged his evacuation from a military base in Latakia, where he had been overseeing operations. He described the situation in Syria as having "fallen into the hands of terrorists."

By Aghakazim Guliyev