Damascus Hands Down Death Sentences to Assad and Ally in Absentia Over War Crimes
A Damascus court sentenced Bashar al-Assad and his brother Maher to death in absentia for war crimes and crimes against humanity, while Assad’s cousin Atef Najib was also condemned to death for overseeing the Daraa crackdown; the proceedings were broadcast on state TV, and the defendants remain in Russia after Assad’s ouster, with Syria’s new rulers pressing Moscow to extradite them.