Syria sentences Bashar Assad to death for war crimes and crimes against humanity

Former Syrian president was convicted in absentia over atrocities committed during the 13-year civil war; his brother Maher Assad and former security chief Atef Najib were also sentenced to death

Lior Ben Ari
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Bashar Assad
Syria
A Syrian court on Tuesday sentenced former President Bashar Assad to death after convicting him of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by forces under his rule during the country’s 13-year civil war.
The verdict and sentence were issued in absentia. Assad remains in Russia, where he has been granted political asylum by the government of President Vladimir Putin.
בשאר אסד נשיא סוריה פרויקט העשורבשאר אסד נשיא סוריה פרויקט העשור
Bashar Assad
(Photo: AP)
The civil war erupted in 2011 and went on to devastate Syria over more than a decade.
Assad’s brother, Maher Assad, was also sentenced to death. Maher commanded the Syrian army’s 4th Division and was regarded as one of the most brutal figures in the former regime.
A death sentence was also handed down to Atef Najib, who headed security forces in the southern province of Daraa, where the uprising against Assad first erupted roughly 15 years ago. Najib was sentenced in person.
The rulings are the first issued by Syrian courts against senior figures from Assad’s ousted regime.
First published: 11:56, 08.11.26
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