Damascus.
Syria’s former President Bashar al-Assad and several former officials have been sentenced to death by a court. Local media reported on Tuesday that they were found guilty of illegally detaining opponents, premeditated murder, torture and crimes against humanity.
In its ruling, the court said that although Assad held the highest position in the country, he failed to uphold the dignity and responsibilities of his office and violated the law.
According to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), the court also sentenced Bashar al-Assad’s cousin and former head of Political Security in the city of Daraa, Atef Najib, to death.
The former president was not present in court and is currently living in exile in Russia. The court also handed down death sentences to the “fugitives” Louay Ali al-Ali, Maher Hafez al-Assad, Fahd Jassem al-Freij, Mohammad Ayman Ayoush, Qusai Ibrahim Mahyoub, Wafiq Saleh Nasser and Talal Fares al-Ayasami.
Bashar al-Assad’s government fell on December 8, 2024, following an offensive by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and allied militant groups. After his government was overthrown, Bashar al-Assad fled to Moscow with his family.
After leaving Damascus in December 2024, Bashar al-Assad issued a statement describing the difficult circumstances surrounding his departure for Russia. The statement was released through the Syrian Presidency’s Telegram account.
Assad said that he had no plans to leave the country and had remained in Damascus until the morning of December 8, carrying out his responsibilities. When the armed groups entered Damascus, he said he contacted his “Russian friends” to arrange a move to Latakia so that military operations could continue from there.
According to the statement, after arriving at Russia’s Hmeimim Air Base, he realised that all remaining Syrian army positions had collapsed and ground forces had withdrawn from the front lines.
As the situation continued to deteriorate and the Russian base came under drone attacks, Moscow arranged for his immediate departure on the evening of December 8.
According to a Xinhua News Agency report, Assad claimed that seeking asylum or abandoning his post had never crossed his mind. He said that continuing the fight was the only option available to him at the time.
