A Syrian civil court in Damascus has sentenced former president Bashar al-Assad to death, citing war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The report notes that the Assad family ruled Syria for 54 years. Bashar al-Assad served as president from 2000 to 2024, during which he allegedly crushed dissent and consolidated power.
Syria’s civil war began in 2011 and intensified again in 2024. That year, opposition forces captured the capital Damascus, after which Assad fled to Russia with his family. Rebel leader Ahmed al-Sharaa later assumed the presidency.
During the conflict, Assad faced accusations of responsibility for the killing of hundreds of thousands of people. The court also handed death sentences to his brother Maher al-Assad, who served in the Syrian military.
In addition, Adeeb Najib, a relative who headed the political security division in Daraa province during the Assad era, was sentenced to death. He was accused of deliberately killing children under 15 and torturing them with intent to kill.
