Latifa al-Droubi

Latifa al-Droubi (Arabic: لَطيْفةُ الدُّروبيِّ; born 1984) is the First Lady of Syria, having assumed the role since 2025 as the wife of Ahmed al-Sharaa, who was appointed president for the transitional period in the country following the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024.^[1][2]

Latifa al-Droubi
لطيفة الدروبي
First Lady of Syria
Current
Assumed role 29 January 2025
President	Ahmed al-Sharaa
Preceded by	Asma al-Assad[a]
Personal details
Born	Latifa al-Droubi 1984 (age 40–41) Al-Qaryatayn, Homs, Syria
Spouse	Ahmed al-Sharaa ​ (m. 2012)​
Children	3
Relatives	Aladdin al-Droubi (ancestor)
^ Role vacant from 8 December 2024 to 29 January 2025.

Born in Al-Qaryatayn, a rural town in Syria's Homs Governorate, Al-Droubi holds a master's degree in Arabic language and literature. As First Lady, she participates in official events alongside her husband and met with Turkish First Lady Emine Erdoğan. Despite her husband's considerable media presence, al-Droubi maintains a private life away from the public eye.

Early life and education

Latifa al-Droubi was born in 1984 in Al-Qaryatayn, a rural town in Syria's Homs Governorate.^[3] She holds a Master's degree in Arabic language and literature.^[4] Turkish media has claimed that her grandfather, Aladdin al-Droubi, who served as the prime minister of Syria from 26 July until his assassination on 21 August 1920, was also the personal doctor of Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid II.^[5]

Her family includes prominent figures such as Sheikh Abdul Ghaffar al-Droubi, a renowned Quran reciter from Syria who passed away in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in 2009,^[6] and Ghazi al-Droubi, who served as Minister of Oil and Mineral Resources from 1984 to 1987 under President Hafez al-Assad. Her sister is also said to be married to Maher Marwan, the governor of Damascus.^[7]

First Lady of Syria

It had been reported that al-Droubi generally wore a hijab, the conventional Syrian attire for women, but no niqab or face veil as sometimes speculated.^[8] This was confirmed on 3 February 2025, when social media platforms circulated footage of al-Droubi performing the Umrah pilgrimage in Mecca with her husband during his first official visit to Saudi Arabia.^[9][10] The next day, Turkish first lady Emine Erdoğan posted a photo taken with al-Droubi after she arrived in Turkey with her husband as part of a state visit.^[11]

The following month, al-Droubi appeared alongside her husband at the Presidential Palace in Damascus in celebration of Eid al-Fitr and also to honour the children of martyrs.^[12] On 11 April, she again appeared with her husband to attend the fourth Antalya Diplomacy Forum in Antalya, Turkey. There, she met with First lady Erdoğan and discussed the possibility of working together to help women and children in Syria. Following the meeting, al-Droubi signed the global goodwill declaration of the Zero Waste Project.^[13]

On 7 June, she appeared in public with her husband for a meeting with several Syrian women in celebration of Eid al-Adha.^[14] The following day, a video appeared showing al-Droubi walking with her husband, surrounded by security personnel, through Tishreen Park in Damascus alongside the Syrian people.^[15] She appeared with her husband on 3 July at the Presidential Palace for the launch of Syria's new visual identity, attended by various ministers and governors.^[16]

Public image

Al-Droubi had maintained a private life away from the public eye, this despite her husband's considerable media presence.^[17] A reporter from The Economist asked her husband if his wife would be the First Lady of Syria. He explained that the president's wife traditionally holds the role, not a random woman hired for it, and that she serves society rather than stands above it.^[18]

Fidel Rahmati of Khaama Press noted that Ahmed al-Sharaa's involvement of his wife in official events is part of his effort to appear more moderate and to portray the Syrian transitional government as modern and balanced. He added that her increasing visibility, particularly at official events, reflects a change in her husband’s approach to public relations.^[19]

Personal life

Al-Droubi met Ahmed al-Sharaa while they were both studying at Damascus University.^[20] They were married in 2012.^[21] Her husband said she lived with him in caves and poultry farms, depending on his work conditions. He often urged her to move to a safer place for the children, but she refused every time.^[21] The couple have three children.^[22][23]