Prosecutors revealed on May 27th that they arrested an alleged ex-prison guard of Syria in Germany on suspicion of carrying out crimes against humanity under the rule of former president Bashar al-Assad.
Identified as “Fahad A,” the man has been accused of “acts of killing, torture and deprivation of liberty” while he was operating in facility in Damascus that was overseen by Syria’s intelligence during 2011 and 2012, according to Al-Monitor via AFP.
The authorities of Germany have gone after a number of suspects for crimes carried out in the Syrian civil war under the value of universal jurisdiction.
Similar efforts to hold Syrian suspects accountable have taken place beyond Germany, including recent legal action pursued in France.
On April 29th, a Syrian Islamist rebel group’s ex-spokesman stood trial in France, Al-Monitor via AFP reported. Officials accused him of being involved in war crimes during Syria’s civil conflict. French police arrested Majdi Nema in Marseille in 2020 during his student exchange programme.
Prosecutors stated Fahad A. allegedly “took part in well over 100 interrogations where prisoners were subjected to severe physical abuse . . .” They continued to allege that “[f]ollowing his superiors’ orders, the suspect also harassed prisoners at night by, for example, hanging them from the ceiling, pouring cold water over them or forcing them to remain in uncomfortable positions.”
Authorities believe at least 70 inmates died from such mistreatment and the “catastrophic” prison conditions.
In 2022, a court convicted former Syrian colonel Anwar Raslan of directing 27 killings and 4,000 torture cases. According to France 24 on May 27th Raslan had overseen these crimes at the Al-Khatib facility during 2011 and 2012. Human rights activists labelled this first global case against state-backed torture in Syrian jails as “historic.”
Al-Monitor via AFP, France 24
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