By Oluwakemi Kindness
Syria’s former President Bashar al-Assad, his brother Maher al-Assad and his cousin Atef Najib have been sentenced to death over crimes committed during the country’s nearly 14-year war.
The Criminal Court in Damascus on Tuesday convicted Bashar al-Assad of premeditated murder, torture and crimes against humanity.
He was sentenced to death in absentia.
Assad was toppled in 2024 and now lives in exile in Russia.
His younger brother, Maher al-Assad, was also sentenced to death in absentia for premeditated murder and torture.
Atef Najib, the former head of political security in southern Syria’s Deraa province, was sentenced to death for crimes against humanity.
Najib, who was detained by Syrian authorities in January last year, was accused of leading a deadly crackdown on protesters in Deraa in 2011. The crackdown helped trigger the uprising that later developed into a civil war.
The court said Najib was convicted of murder, the intentional killing of children under 15 and torture resulting in death.
Judge Al-Aryan said witness testimony established Bashar al-Assad’s role as the “highest decision-maker” in the crimes and found that he had used state institutions to facilitate them.
The ruling is the first major case against figures from the former Assad government since Syria’s transitional authorities began prosecuting members of the former regime.
The verdict has been welcomed by many Syrians seeking accountability for abuses committed during Assad’s rule.
The ruling could also establish a legal precedent for other former government officials accused of crimes during the conflict.
