Syrian pro-Assad fighter jailed for life in Germany for crimes against humanity
The court in the city of Stuttgart found the former militiaman, previously named as Ammar A, guilty of crimes including murder and torture after a trial which involved testimony from 30 witnesses.
Shortly after the outbreak of anti-Assad protests in early 2011, the man joined a pro-government Shia militia in the southern town of Bosra al-Sham.
The court said that the group was supported by the Lebanese Shia Hezbollah group, which intervened in Syria's conflict in support of Assad's government.
He proceeded to take part in, and in some cases direct, several crimes against the local Sunni population with the aim of "terrorising" them and driving them from the town, the court found.
In August 2012, an unarmed 21-year-old student was shot dead and had his house plundered during a raid by the militia. The victim's mother and brother were among the witnesses for the prosecution.
In another incident in 2013 the armed group arrested three men and beat them continuously with Kalashnikovs while taking them to a military intelligence detention facility, where they were tortured.
The court heard from witnesses -- most of them originally from Syria -- who travelled from across Germany and from Brazil, Belgium and the Netherlands to testify.
Assad was overthrown in December 2024, allowing witnesses to provide the court with images of the detention facilities they were held in and the damage that the militia caused to their houses.
Local media reported that at the beginning of the trial in October one of the victims present in the courtroom broke down as details of the crimes were read out.
German authorities have pursued several suspects for crimes committed in Syria's civil war under the principle of universal jurisdiction, even after Assad's ousting.
The man convicted on Tuesday was arrested in December 2023 in the southern state of Baden-Wuerttemberg, of which Stuttgart is the capital.
In 2022, former Syrian colonel Anwar Raslan was found guilty of overseeing the murders of 27 people and the torture of 4,000 others at the notorious Al-Khatib jail in 2011 and 2012.
That was the first international trial over state-sponsored torture in Syrian prisons and was hailed as "historic" by human rights activists.
France and Sweden.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
AFP
2 hours ago
- AFP
Image of woman protesting outside Trump-Starmer meeting is fake
"Best Monday in Scotland evah. This lady is wicked awesome," says a July 28, 2025 post on Threads. The clip showing Trump, with Starmer beside him, speaking about his Truth Social platform from inside his Turnberry resort on Scotland's southwestern coast as a woman stands outside the window carrying a sign that reads: "Trump is a cunt." Show Hide Content warning Show Image Screenshot from Threads taken July 31, 2025 Hide Similar posts shared the video or still images from it across Threads and other platforms such as Instagram and X, with some users branding the woman a hero and others wondering how she managed to evade the US Secret Service. Progressive commentator Kyle Kulinski, whose YouTube channel "Secular Talk" has 1.9 million subscribers, was among those who amplified the clip on X. Trump's press conference with Starmer came toward the end of a five-day tour of Scotland spent playing golf, opening a new course and signing a major trade deal with the European Union. The president's visit drew some protests, with several hundred people demonstrating outside the US consulate in the capital Edinburgh and further north in the city of Aberdeen, near where he inaugurated his new golf course in Balmedie. But the video spreading online is altered. The original footage of the sit-down, as carried live by Fox News, shows no such protester outside as Trump mentions Truth Social -- or at any other point during the press conference. from the event further confirm the woman depicted in the online posts was not truly there. Image Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer (L) speaks with US President Donald Trump during a bilateral meeting in Turnberry, Scotland on July 28, 2025 (POOL / Christopher Furlong) The protester edited into the background of the altered video is the late Scottish comedian Janey Godley, who famously stood outside Trump's Turnberry course with the anti-Trump sign in June 2016. Godley, who died in 2024 ived here), had posted the original picture of her stunt to social media, a blog on Medium and her personal website (archived here, here and here). She also shared other photos, a clip showcasing the poster and a YouTube video recapping the incident (archived here, here and here). Show Hide Content warning Show Image Screenshot from X taken August 1, 2025 Hide She went on to protest other Trump visits in similar fashion. During his 2025 trip, a protester in Edinburgh held a sign saying, "Janey Godley was right." AFP previously debunked other misinformation about Trump's time in Scotland here.
Euronews
5 hours ago
- Euronews
White House keeps tariff pressure on EU car industry
US President Donald Trump doesn't appear willing to ease the pressure on German carmakers. The US executive order on reciprocal tariffs published just before 1 August stopped short of applying the 15% tariffs agreed by Trump and Commission president Ursula von der Leyen to US imports of EU vehicles. Since 2 April, EU cars have been hit with 25% US tariffs under the section 232 of the US Trade Expansion Act, which allows the US president to restrict imports of goods threatening US national security. The deal concluded last Sunday with President Ursula von der Leyen was meant to apply the 15% tariffs to EU cars, and to exempt certain strategic products such as aircraft from tariffs, but neither proviso appears in the executive order. The executive order imposes a blanket 15% tariff on EU goods to apply from 8 August. Goods already in transit before that date will enjoy the previous tariff rate of 10% until 5 October, the US order says. Any attempt to circumvent these tariffs will be penalized with a 40% duty on the goods concerned, the order adds. Despite the apparent omissions from the order, EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič welcomed 'the first results of the EU–US deal". 'This reinforces stability for businesses as well as trust in the transatlantic economy,' he said on X, adding: 'EU exporters now benefit from a more competitive position.' Šefčovič also said, however, that 'the work continues', referring to ongoing negotiations on a joint statement intended to formalise the political trade agreement reached on July 27. Diverging narratives The Commission and the US administration are struggling to agree on a joint text, and up to now have pushed diverging narratives on the deal. Uncertainty remains over the fate of steel and aluminium, currently hit by 50% US tariffs, which, according to the Commission, are expected to soon be subject to lower tariff-rate quotas. Negotiations are also ongoing over a series of exemptions, as pressure mounts from the EU wine and spirits industry. In a factsheet published on Monday, the US also claimed that the EU committed not to apply telecommunications network usage fees in an upcoming Digital Network Act, which is currently being disputed between EU telecom companies and US tech giants in Brussels. On Thursday the Commission noted that a white paper on digital networks published in February 2024 assessed that imposing a network fee was 'not a viable solution'. 'Such an exemption would not apply to US company only,' a Commission spokesperson said.
Euronews
8 hours ago
- Euronews
Wadephul says Berlin should prevent Israel's international isolation
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul visited the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Friday, where he is expected to hold talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah. The meeting is expected to address attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinians and the plans being discussed in Israel to annex the territory. The Israeli Knesset recently signalled its support for a possible annexation in a resolution, a move that has met with sharp international criticism. The German government is also firmly opposed to such a measure. Wadephul arrived in Israel on Thursday, where he met with his Israeli counterpart Gideon Sa'ar and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In Jerusalem, Wadephul said Israel was in danger of becoming internationally isolated. "I see it as Germany's duty to do everything it can to prevent this," he said. He referred to Germany's "never-ending historical obligation" for Israel's security. Both sides must take action, the foreign minister said. "My mission here today was to tell the Israeli side that they must act now and not just at some point." He added: "We need clarity - also from Israel - that no policy of expulsion and no policy of active annexation is being pursued." What is needed is for the remaining hostages to be released from Gaza, where they are being held captive by the militant group Hamas. "It is time to end this war," Wadephul said in a call directed "first and foremost to the Hamas terrorist organisation." German aid for Gaza Amid the dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza, Wadephul pledged additional aid during a meeting with representatives of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Jerusalem. He announced that Germany would provide the World Food Programme (WFP) with a further €5 million. With these funds, the WFP should be able to provide food and put bakeries and soup kitchens back into operation in order to distribute bread and hot meals. As Wadephul explained, the daily ceasefires established by Israel in parts of the Gaza Strip will be used to distribute relief supplies via the UN. The German government is also supporting the construction of a Maltese field hospital in Gaza City to provide urgently needed basic medical care. Meanwhile, CSU Secretary-General Martin Huber has categorically ruled out sanctions against Israel by the German government. In an interview with Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland, Huber said that criticising the Israeli government is legitimate, "but sanctions between friends are out of the question." Huber also rejects measures such as entry bans, such as those imposed by the Netherlands on the far-right Israeli ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir. Berlin also hasn't joined major allies France, Britain, and Canada in saying it will recognise a Palestinian state in September. But in a statement ahead of his departure Thursday, Wadephul underlined Germany's position that a two-state solution is 'the only way' to ensure a future in peace and security for people on both sides. "For Germany, the recognition of a Palestinian state stands rather at the end of the process. But such a process must begin now. Germany will not move from this aim," Wadephul said. US President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff also arrived in Israel on Thursday to discuss the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza. Witkoff and US Ambassador Mike Huckabee will inspect food distribution in Gaza on Friday, the White House said.
