ALEPPO: The first trial was opened on Tuesday of some of the hundreds of suspects linked to deadly clashes in Syria’s coastal provinces earlier this year that quickly spiraled into sectarian attacks.
State media reported that 14 people were brought to Aleppo’s Palace of Justice following a monthslong, government-led investigation into the violence in March involving government forces and supporters of ousted Syrian President Bashar Assad. The investigating committee referred 563 suspects to the judiciary.
Seven of the defendants in the court were Assad loyalists, while the other seven were members of the new government’s security forces. A judge was heard during the televised proceedings asking they were military or civilian.
The trial follows pressure from local civil society and the international community for the country’s new rulers to commit to judicial reform after decades under the autocratic rule of the Assad dynasty.
Despite initial reports from state media that charges could quickly be brought against the defendants, the judge closed the session and rescheduled the next hearing for December.
The charges could include sedition, inciting civil war, attacking security forces, murder, looting and leading armed gangs, state media reported.
Given the scale of the violence and number of suspects, it’s unclear how long the proceedings will take.
The clashes in March erupted after armed groups aligned with Assad ambushed the new government’s security forces. A counteroffensive then spiraled into sectarian revenge attacks and massacres of hundreds of civilians from the Alawite religious minority to which Assad belongs and who largely live along the coast.
The attacks on the Alawite religious minority mounted pressure on interim President Ahmad Al-Sharaa. Since coming to power in December, his government has scrambled to step out from diplomatic isolation and convince the US to drop crippling sanctions and boost trade to rebuild the war-torn country.
The government’s investigating committee in July concluded that over 1,400 people, mostly civilians, were killed during several days of sectarian violence. But the inquiry said there was no evidence that Syria’s new military leaders had ordered attacks on the Alawite community.
A United Nations probe, however, said violence targeting civilians by government-aligned factions were “widespread and systematic.”
The UN commission said during the violence homes in Alawite-majority areas were raided and civilians were asked “whether they were Sunni or Alawite.” It said: ”Alawite men and boys were then taken away to be executed.”
Syria opens first public trial over deadly coastal violence
https://arab.news/ph83p
Syria opens first public trial over deadly coastal violence
- Seven of the defendants in the court were Assad loyalists
- The other seven were members of the new government’s security forces
Syria’s growth accelerates as sanctions ease, refugees return
- Economy grows much faster than World Bank’s 1% estimate, fueling plans for currency’s relaunch
NEW YORK: Syria’s economy is growing much faster than the World Bank’s 1 percent estimate for 2025 as refugees flow back after the end of a 14-year civil war, fueling plans for the relaunch of the country’s currency and efforts to build a new Middle East financial hub, central bank Governor AbdulKader Husrieh has said.
Speaking via video link at a conference in New York, Husrieh also said he welcomed a deal with Visa to establish digital payment systems and added that the country is working with the International Monetary Fund to develop methods to accurately measure economic data to reflect the resurgence.
The Syrian central bank chief, who is helping guide the war-torn country’s reintegration into the global economy after the fall of Bashar Assad’s regime about a year ago, described the repeal of many US sanctions against Syria as “a miracle.”
The US Treasury on Nov. 10 announced a 180-day extension of the suspension of the so-called Caesar sanctions against Syria; lifting them entirely requires approval by the US Congress.
Husrieh said that based on discussions with US lawmakers, he expects the sanctions to be repealed by the end of 2025, ending “the last episode of the sanctions.”
“Once this happens, this will give comfort to our potential correspondent banks about dealing with Syria,” he said.
Husrieh also said that Syria was working to revamp regulations aimed at combating money laundering and the financing of terrorism, which he said would provide further assurances to international lenders.
Syria’s central bank has recently organized workshops with banks from the US, Turkiye, Jordan and Australia to discuss due diligence in reviewing transactions, he added.
Husrieh said that Syria is preparing to launch a new currency in eight note denominations and confirmed plans to remove two zeroes from them in a bid to restore confidence in the battered pound.
“The new currency will be a signal and symbol for this financial liberation,” Husrieh said. “We are glad that we are working with Visa and Mastercard,” Husrieh said.
