DAMASCUS — A Syrian court sentenced ousted President Bashar Assad to death in absentia on Tuesday, convicting him of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the country's 14-year conflict.
The Fourth Criminal Court in Damascus also sentenced Assad's younger brother Maher to death in absentia for premeditated murder and torture, The Associated Press reported. Both brothers fled to Russia after the government collapsed in December 2024 and were granted political asylum. Syria's new authorities have asked Moscow to hand them over.
The ruling is the first against Assad or members of his inner circle since the family's five decades in power ended 20 months ago. Judge Fakhareddine al-Aryan said Assad used state institutions to commit war crimes and crimes against humanity, speaking in a session broadcast live on state television.
A third defendant was in the courtroom. Atef Najib, Assad's maternal cousin and the former head of political security in Daraa province, was sentenced to death for crimes against humanity, Al Jazeera reported. He stood inside a cage in a prisoner's uniform as the verdict was read, with a crowd gathered outside the courthouse.
Najib oversaw the 2011 arrest and torture of more than a dozen teenagers who wrote anti-government graffiti on a school wall in Daraa, an episode that triggered nationwide protests and ultimately the civil war. That conflict left roughly half a million people dead.
The verdict is the first under the transitional authorities, who began trying former officials this year.