Syria sentences Bashar Assad to death in absentia

On Tuesday, a Syrian court pronounced former President Bashar Assad, convicted of premeditated murder and other alleged war crimes, to be in death in absentia. Assad, who ruled Syria for over five decades until his ousting in December 2024, fled to Russia after rebels captured Damascus. The Fourth Criminal Court in Damascus delivered the verdict, emphasizing Assad's role as the ultimate decision-maker in orchestrating the state institutions that perpetrated these crimes.

The court's ruling was broadcast live on Syrian state television. Born in 1965, Assad ascended to the presidency in 2000 following his father's death. His regime maintained Alawite minority dominance in Sunni-majority Syria and allied closely with Iran, often clashing with Israel and the US. Russian authorities have sought his extradition.

Assad's brother Maher, along with several other former government figures, were also sentenced to death in absentia for premeditated murder and torture that led to death. Senior security official Atef Najib, a cousin of the former leader, received the same penalty after he was apprehended attempting to flee Syria in January 2025.

Najib, a former Syrian army brigadier general who headed the Political Security Branch in Daraa during the 2011 uprising, was charged with murder, intentional killing of children, and torture resulting in death, all of which were deemed crimes against humanity.