Syrian justice minister faces calls for removal over execution video
Syrian activists and rights group have urged the investigation or sacking of the new justice minister after old footage resurfaced which showed him overseeing the execution of two women accused of prostitution, The Arab Weekly reported on January 9th.
In one of the resurfaced videos, armed men asked a veiled woman accused of prostitution to kneel down on the street before shooting her dead.
A man in the video appears to be Shadi Al-Waisi, the interim Syrian Justice minister. Al-Waisi speaks to the woman before recording her execution on his phone.
Verify-Sy, a Syrian fact-checking organisation, has confirmed that the man in the video is Shadi al-Waisi.
The Verify-Sy website quoted an anonymous senior official who confirmed the identity of al-Waisi. The senior official stated that the executions were “carried out in accordance with the laws in force at the time” and reflect “a past stage”, The Arab Weekly reported.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has also verified that it was al-Waisi in the video.
READ: Syrian justice minister scrutinised after execution videos resurface
Another video shows al-Waisi sentencing a veiled woman to death for prostitution, a fighter beside him proceeded to shoot the woman in the head immediately afterwards.
The two videos were filmed in the Syrian province of Idlib in 2015, when the region was ruled by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the Islamist insurgent group.
A woman’s rights activist, Rowaida Youssef Kanaan, wrote in a Facebook post, “What is currently required: dismissing the minister of justice, Shadi al-Waisi, because he is a disaster for the future of Syria.”
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the group that played a central role in overthrowing the Assad regime, is under more pressure now to uphold the rights of all and ensure an inclusive transition.
The Arab Weekly
