Syria's First Lady says turned down offers to leave country

Syria's first lady says she has turned down multiple offers to leave the war-stricken country, stressing that she did not want people to lose their trust in her husband, President Bashr al-Assad.

Asma al-Assad made the remarks in an interview with the Moscow-based Russia-24 news channel aired on Tuesday. It was her first interview with international media since the beginning of the crisis in Syria.

"I never thought of being anywhere else at all. ... Yes, I was offered the opportunity to leave Syria, or rather to run from Syria," Assad said, adding, "These offers included guarantees of safety and protection for my children, and even financial security."

The 41-year-old British-born also noted that the proposals were not about her well-being or her children, but rather “a deliberate attempt to shatter people's confidence in their president.”

Assad further pointed out that those who made the "foolish" offers were not Syrians.

The mother-of-three former investment banker has styled herself as a rights campaigner.

SS