Former Syrian President Bashar Assad has been sentenced to death in absentia by a criminal court in Damascus, according to infohub.kz.
As reported by Al Jazeera, the court found Assad and Atef Najib, the former head of political security in Daraa province, guilty of crimes committed during the country's civil war. Both received death sentences.
The court ruled that Assad was guilty of intentional murder, while Najib was convicted of intentional murder and torture. Additionally, the court classified the actions of Assad's government in Daraa province in 2011 as crimes against humanity.
Earlier, in September 2025, a Syrian court had issued an arrest warrant for the former president in connection with the suppression of protests in Daraa in 2011, charging him with intentional murder, torture resulting in death, and unlawful deprivation of liberty.
It is recalled that in early December 2024, the Syrian capital fell under rebel control less than two weeks after their offensive began, during which they seized several major cities. Subsequently, Bashar Assad stepped down as president and left the country, instructing that power be transferred peacefully.
Assad and his family arrived in Moscow. Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that Vladimir Putin personally decided to grant asylum to Bashar Assad. In late April, it was reported that Russia had refused to extradite the ousted president to Syria's new government.