Syria's Asma al-Assad faces war crimes investigation in UK

British police have opened a preliminary war crimes investigation into Asma al-Assad, the British-born wife of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, over allegations of supporting and encouraging terrorism.

Assad, a dual British-Syrian national, could face extradition to the United Kingdom and the loss of her British citizenship if convicted on war crimes charges.

The preliminary probe opened by the London Metropolitan Police's War Crimes unit follows legal investigations by Guernica 37, a London-based Barristers' Chambers specialising in international criminal and human rights law.

Guernica 37 has shared confidential filings with the Metropolitan Police outlining allegations of incitement and encouragement to commit acts of terrorism by Asma al-Assad, it said in a statement on Saturday.

The Syrian first lady is accused of supporting and encouraging regime actions over the course of the ten-year uprising and civil war, including the torture and murder thousands of prisoners and the deadly use of chemical weapons.

"It is important to hold not only those who carry out these horrific crimes accountable but also those who promote, incite, encourage and glorify such acts," Guernica 37 said.

"As the subject is a British national it is important that she faces prosecution if the evidence supports the allegation and not merely stripped of her citizenship," it added.

The preliminary probe is the first Syrian war crimes investigation to be opened in the UK.

Last month, Germany became the first country to successfully prosecute a Syrian official for complicity in crimes against humanity.

Read more: Syrian activists call for revoking British citizenship of Assad's wife

The Koblenz court sentenced Eyad Al-Gharib, a low-ranking former intelligence official, to four and a half years in prison for his role in the arrest and torture of anti-regime protesters.

Another defendant, Anwar Raslan, is accused directly of crimes against humanity, including overseeing the murder of 58 people and the torture of 4,000 others. 

Although Asma Assad is unlikely to face trial in the UK, a warrant for her extradition could prevent the Syrian first lady from traveling outside the war-torn country.

If convicted, she could be stripped of her British citizenship.

Assad, 45, was born and raised in London. She worked as an investment banker before her marriage to Bashar al-Assad.

The United States sanctioned Assad last year, saying that the first lady had become "one of Syria's most notorious war profiteers".

Syrian and British activists have previously called on the UK to both prosecute and strip Assad of her citizenship.

Read more: Poliarisation gnaws at Syrian hopes for reconciliation

This month marks the 10th anniversary of the Syrian revolution.

Protests against the Assad regime were met with an increasingly violent crackdown that sparked the ongoing civil war.

It is unclear how many Syrians have died in the conflict, with figures ranging between 380,000 and more than half a million.

Tens of thousands who were detained over the course of the war are still unaccounted for, according to the United Nations.

More than six million Syrians have been internally displaced with another 5.6 million forced to flee the country and seek refugee elsewhere.

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