Former Syrian President Assad Sentenced to Death for War Crimes

A Syrian court on Tuesday sentenced former ruler Bashar al-Assad to death in absentia. Assad was found guilty of charges of “war crimes” and “crimes against humanity” during the country’s civil war. The verdict against Assad, who fled with his family to Moscow, Russia in December 2024, is the first under the new authority, which this year began trying figures from the previous administration, both in person and in absentia.

The court also sentenced his brother, Maher al-Assad, to death after finding him guilty of premeditated murder, torture, and incitement. The Syrian court ordered the execution of the al-Assad brothers and pledged to pursue them internationally.

The court also sentenced Assad-era official Atif Najib to death for “crimes against humanity” committed while he served as head of political security in Daraa province, where the 2011 uprising began. Najib, a cousin of Assad who was arrested in January last year, was convicted of crimes including murder, “the deliberate killing of children under the age of 15,” and “torture leading to death.” The acts he was accused of constituted “crimes against humanity,” the court said as it handed down “the harshest penalty against him, which is the death penalty.”