Key Takeaways
1. Bashar al-Assad, the former president of Syria, is reportedly spending his time playing online video games in a luxury apartment in Moscow after fleeing Syria in December 2024.
2. Assad’s shift to gaming is ironic, given his previous claims that he only used the internet for research purposes during his presidency.
3. He has been living privately, often remaining in his apartment and avoiding public outings, with occasional shopping trips nearby.
4. Assad and his family reside in a luxurious skyscraper with security provided by the Russian government, who granted him asylum for humanitarian reasons.
5. The Russian government has stipulated that Assad must avoid media appearances and political engagements while in exile.
Bashar al-Assad, the ex-president of Syria, is said to have discovered gaming. In a surprising turn of events in his life after leaving power, reports claim that he spends several hours every day engaged in online video games from a luxury apartment in Moscow.
New Life in Exile
This unusual tidbit was uncovered by a recent investigation conducted by the German newspaper Die Zeit. The 60-year-old former leader, who escaped from Damascus in December 2024 during a rebel attack, now lives a very private life, mainly concentrating on gaming and occasional shopping trips near his home.
Close associates of Assad indicate that he seldom leaves his apartment and rarely visits the nearby grocery store within the building. Instead, he prefers to dive deeply into lengthy gaming sessions.
A Shift in Interests
Assad’s newfound passion for gaming is quite ironic, especially given his comments from February 2007, where he informed ABC’s Diane Sawyer that he only used the internet for research purposes.
He became president in 2000 after succeeding his father, Hafez al-Assad, and governed Syria for more than twenty years before his regime crumbled. His time in power was filled with accusations of grave human rights abuses, including state-sponsored torture, mass detentions, and indiscriminate bombings throughout the civil war that erupted in 2011.
With the backing of allies like Iran and Russia, Assad managed to cling to his regime for over thirteen years despite the ongoing civil war. Following a swift advance by rebel forces led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, he fled and sought refuge in Russia, where Vladimir Putin personally granted him asylum for humanitarian reasons in December 2024.
Living in Luxury
As reported by Die Zeit, Assad and his family reside in about 20 apartments that span three floors of a luxurious skyscraper, which features shopping malls on its lower levels. He aims to keep a low profile while being safeguarded by private bodyguards, whose expenses are covered by the Russian government.
This aligns with a statement made in April 2025 by the Russian Ambassador to Iraq, Elbrus Kutrashev, who remarked that Assad’s asylum was contingent on his complete retreat from media appearances and any political engagements.
While the report did not specify the types of games Assad enjoys, there’s a running joke among gamers that he is often found playing Russian tanks in World of Tanks.
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