Atef Najib faces at least 10 charges in landmark Syria trial

"Atef Najib, the former head of political security in southern Syria's Deraa province, appeared in the Fourth Criminal Court in Damascus on Sunday in a cage and wearing a striped prison uniform. He is accused of overseeing a violent crackdown on antigovernment protesters in Deraa during the 2011 uprising, which sparked Syria's 14-year civil war. The charges include murder, torture and responsibility for massacres, in the second session of a landmark trial."

"Seventy-five plaintiffs have filed cases against Najib and are expected to give testimony in court. Attending the session were relatives of victims, members of the National Transitional Justice Commission and representatives of international legal and humanitarian organisations. After an open session lasting about an hour, the court entered a closed session for the protection of some witnesses."

"The proceedings mark the first effort in Syria to bring Assad-era officials to justice. Al-Assad and his brother Maher, former commander of the Syrian military's 4th Armoured Division, are being tried in absentia. Al-Assad fled to Russia in December 2024, and most members of his inner circle have also escaped Syria."

"The government of interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa has faced criticism over delays in launching a promised transitional justice process after the war, in which an estimated half a million people were killed. But authorities now appear to be moving more aggressively to prosecute officials linked to al-Assad. Najib oversaw political security in Deraa when teenagers who scrawled antigovernment graffiti on a school wall were arrested a"

Atef Najib, former head of political security in Syria’s Deraa province, appeared in Damascus court in a cage wearing a striped prison uniform. He faces at least 10 charges, including murder, torture, and responsibility for massacres, connected to overseeing a violent crackdown on antigovernment protesters during the 2011 uprising. The uprising in Deraa helped spark Syria’s 14-year civil war. Seventy-five plaintiffs have filed cases and are expected to testify. The session included relatives of victims and representatives from national transitional justice and international legal and humanitarian organisations. The court held an open session, then entered a closed session to protect some witnesses. The trial represents an early effort to prosecute Assad-era officials, while Bashar al-Assad and Maher al-Assad are tried in absentia.

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