JEDDAH: Syrian dictator Bashar Assad’s uncle is to be tried in Switzerland for war crimes and crimes against humanity from his time as a military commander in 1982.
Rifaat Assad, 86, has been charged with “ordering homicides, acts of torture, cruel treatment and illegal detentions” in February 1982 when he was in charge of regime troops in the western Syrian city of Hama, Switzerland’s attorney general’s office said on Tuesday.
Assad, a former vice president, was named the “Butcher of Hama” for crushing an insurrection in the city and killing up to 60,000 people, mostly civilians.
He lived in exile, mostly in France, from the mid 1980s, after he was accused of trying to topple his brother, Bashar’s father Hafez Assad, who was president at the time.
He returned to Syria in 2021, escaping jail in France, where he was found guilty of acquiring millions of euros of property using funds diverted from the Syrian state.
Switzerland initiated war crimes proceedings against Assad in December 2013 under the principle of universal jurisdiction and the absence of statutory limitations on war crimes.
The initial complaint was filed by TRIAL International, a rights group that works with victims and pushes Switzerland to prosecute alleged international criminals. “It’s another step for justice for the Syrian people,” TRIAL chief Philip Grant said.
The trial would examine “the responsibility of the highest Syrian officials and shed light on crimes committed by the Assad clan against its own people,” he said.
Assad is unlikely to appear in person, but Swiss law allows for trials in the absence of the accused.
Trial for Syria’s ‘Butcher of Hama’ Rifaat Assad for crimes against humanity in 1982
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Trial for Syria’s ‘Butcher of Hama’ Rifaat Assad for crimes against humanity in 1982
- The case was brought by the advocacy group Trial International under the principle of “universal jurisdiction”
Iraqi Kurdistan leader welcomes Syrian decree recognising Kurdish rights
- Remarks followed issuance of presidential decree by Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa
- Decree affirmed Syrian Kurds form integral part of the Syrian people
ERBIL: The President of Iraq’s Kurdistan Region, Nechirvan Barzani, on Saturday welcomed a new Syrian presidential decree recognising the country’s Kurdish population, Syrian state media reported.
Barzani described the move as a significant political and legal step toward building a new Syria, the Syrian Arab News Agency added.
In a statement, Barzani expressed support for efforts aimed at establishing a Syrian state that represents all its communities without discrimination or marginalization.
His remarks followed the issuance on Friday of a presidential decree by Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa.
The decree affirmed that Syrian Kurds are an integral part of the Syrian people and that their cultural and linguistic identity forms an inseparable component of Syria’s unified and diverse national identity, SANA reported.
The decree also formally recognized the Kurdish language and restores Syrian citizenship to all Kurdish Syrians.
The announcement came after clashes erupted last week in the northern city of Aleppo, leaving at least 23 people dead, according to Syria’s health ministry, and forcing more than 150,000 people to flee two Kurdish-run areas of the city.
The fighting ended after Kurdish fighters withdrew and Syrian army forces retook control of the area.
