In the appeal, the Public Prosecution Service demands 15 years of imprisonment for a 37-year-old man from Aleppo, Syria. The suspect was the leader of a militia from January 2012 to December 2017, which was deployed by the government of former president Assad to commit violence against civilians. He is the first suspect to stand trial in the Netherlands for crimes against humanity committed by the Syrian government.
The suspect was arrested in May 2021 in Kerkrade after he came to the Netherlands in 2019 to apply for asylum. An investigation by the International Crimes Team (TIM) of the National Police revealed that he was part of the regime that caused countless deaths under former president Assad.
Threat as a suffocating blanket
According to the Public Prosecution Service, the suspect participated as a leader in an organization aimed at committing international crimes. This organization, Liwa al-Quds, was established in the Palestinian refugee camp Al-Nayrab in southeastern Aleppo. Liwa al-Quds functioned as the extended arm of Assads regime and was armed by the regimes security services. The organization allegedly intended to use physical violence, detain innocent civilians, and commit looting.
The attorney general (prosecutor on behalf of the Public Prosecution Service in appeal) stated today at the hearing: “The residents of the Al-Nayrab camp lived in constant fear of the oppression and arbitrary violence that could occur at any moment, literally around the corner. The threat it posed must have hung over the camp and its inhabitants like a suffocating blanket.”
According to the Public Prosecution Service, the suspect is also responsible for the arbitrary arrest, torture, and mistreatment of a Syrian citizen living in the Al-Nayrab camp. The victim was dragged from his home in early 2013 and handed over to the Air Force Intelligence (LID). In a LID prison, the victim was unlawfully detained for weeks and was tortured in a horrific manner. The Public Prosecution Service is convinced that the suspect, as the leader of the organization, knew that the victim would be tortured after his arrest. Therefore, he is on trial for complicity in torture and mistreatment.
Appeal
In the first instance, the suspect was sentenced by the court in The Hague to 12 years in prison. He was also prosecuted for the arrest and contribution to the torture and mistreatment of a second victim. This victim was taken from his home in the camp on the same night as the first victim and handed over to the LID. The court acquitted the suspect of this. In the appeal, additional investigations were conducted, but no additional evidence was found for the actions committed against the second victim. Therefore, the Public Prosecution Service accepts the acquittal in that part of the case.
The suspect previously acknowledged that he was a member of Liwa al-Quds but denied involvement in international crimes and violent arrests. The Public Prosecution Service asserts that there is indeed substantial evidence of the suspects involvement. Multiple witnesses have provided compelling statements, and evidence was found on the suspects phone. The evidence is supplemented with material from open sources such as photos and videos. The suspect is seen in these photos and videos wearing a camouflage suit with the emblem of Liwa al-Quds, and he is also carrying a weapon. In the photos and videos, he is in the company of the highest commanders of the militia. On social media, he is referred to as superior and military leader.
It is therefore clear to the Public Prosecution Service that he is responsible for the crimes against humanity and that he participated as a leader in a criminal organization aimed at international crimes in Syria. The Public Prosecution Service is therefore demanding 15 years of imprisonment.