Damascus Court Sentences Waseem Al-Assad to Death
The Fourth Criminal Court in Damascus has handed down a death sentence to Waseem Al-Assad, finding him guilty of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity during his tenure under the former regime. The verdict, delivered during the sixth session of the trial, also mandates the full confiscation of the defendant’s movable and immovable assets, which are to be transferred to the public treasury.
Presiding Judge Fakhr al-Din al-Aryan oversaw the proceedings, which were attended by representatives from the National Commission for Transitional Justice and various international legal and humanitarian organizations. According to the court’s findings, there was conclusive evidence linking a militant group under Al-Assad’s command to a violent assault on a commercial establishment in the town of Jarmana. The group was found to have looted the premises and abducted the owner, a move explicitly linked to his opposition to the former regime. Furthermore, the court determined that the defendant and his subordinates were involved in the systemic kidnapping and murder of Syrian citizens across multiple regions.
In his summary, Judge al-Aryan stated that the court had formally charged Al-Assad with multiple counts of premeditated murder, as well as acts of torture categorized as crimes against humanity and war crimes. The sentencing marks a significant legal development in the ongoing proceedings against former regime officials.
The trial, which commenced on June 24, focused on several key charges against the defendant, primarily the formation and management of irregular armed groups under the authority of Brigadier Ghiyath Dalla—a commander in the 4th Division led by Maher Al-Assad. Testimony presented during the trial indicated that these units had been active since early 2011, participating in military operations that targeted civilian populations in the Eastern Ghouta region, specifically the town of Mliha. The court also heard evidence regarding the defendant’s involvement in drug trafficking operations.
This judicial action follows a series of rulings issued by the Fourth Criminal Court on August 11, which also sentenced the former leader Bashar Al-Assad to death in absentia. Other high-ranking figures, including Maher Hafez Al-Assad, Fahd Jassim al-Freij, Luay Ali al-Ali, Qusay Ibrahim Mihoub, Wafiq Saleh Nasser, and Talal Fares al-Issami, were similarly sentenced to death for crimes involving torture, unlawful deprivation of liberty, and war crimes. The court noted that charges against one defendant, Muhammad Ayman Ayoush, were dropped following his death. The ongoing trials represent a concerted effort by the current judicial process to hold individuals accountable for actions taken against the Syrian population over the past decade.
