Then-Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, on Nov. 14, 2017. SANA/Handout via Reuters
A Syrian court sentenced ousted leader Bashar al-Assad to death on Tuesday, convicting him of crimes committed during the country’s nearly 14-year war, including arbitrary arrests, killings, and torture.
The trial took place in absentia because Assad, who was ousted in a rebel offensive in December 2024, fled the capital Damascus to Russia, where he received political asylum.
Assad, who is currently in Moscow, faced multiple charges in the trial in Syria, where he was accused of crimes against humanity and war crimes during the country’s nearly 14-year civil war that left about half a million people dead.
The Criminal Court in Damascus on Aug. 11 handed down a death sentence to Assad for the crimes of “premeditated and intentional murder of more than one person and of children, torture, arbitrary arrest and crimes against humanity.”
Also sentenced to death in the same case was Assad’s cousin Atef Najib, who was convicted of overseeing a crackdown in the Syrian province of Daraa that sparked an uprising that later led to civil war.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
