Syrian court sentences ex-President Bashar al-Assad to death

A Syrian court has sentenced ousted dictator Bashar al-Assad to death in absentia after convicting him of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the country’s devastating civil war, while his cousin Atef Najib — former head of political security in Deraa — received the same sentence inside a courtroom cage.

As reported by BBC News, Assad fled to Moscow with his family in December 2024 after his regime collapsed following an 11-day military campaign led by forces under Syria’s current president Ahmed al-Sharaa, ending five decades of Assad family rule.

Najib was convicted of murder, intentional killing of children under 15 and torture leading to death. Deraa, where the 2011 uprising began after security forces tortured teenagers for anti-government graffiti, was central to the case.

Whether Syria can secure Assad’s extradition from Russia remains deeply uncertain.