Dutch Court Sentences Former Syrian Militia Member to 26 Years for Crimes Against Humanity
Judges said Rafiq al Q. tortured detainees and raped one victim while working for a pro-Assad militia during Syria’s civil war.
- On Monday, The District Court in The Hague sentenced a 58-year-old Syrian national to 26 years in prison for torture and rape, marking the first time The Dutch have convicted someone of sexual violence as a crime against humanity.
- Judges established that Rafiq served as an interrogator for the National Defense Forces in Salamiyah, Syria, during 2013 and 2014, ordering and committing torture and sexual violence against eight victims.
- Authorities arrested the defendant in Druten after he claimed asylum in the Netherlands in 2021, with the trial relying on universal jurisdiction to prosecute international war crimes committed abroad.
- Similar cases have emerged in Germany and Paris as Syrian officials face prosecution worldwide, highlighting widespread abuse in detention centers during the era of Bashar Assad, who fled to Russia.
- Prosecutors and the defendant have 14 days to appeal the conviction, as this verdict follows the Assad-era government's collapse and reflects Syria's broader push to secure justice for crimes committed by officials loyal to the former president.
23 Articles
23 Articles
Dutch Court Jails ‘Assad Torturer’ for 26 Years for Torture, Rape
A Dutch court Monday sentenced a Syrian man to 26 years in jail for the torture and rape of opponents of former president Bashar al-Assad during the country's civil war. The 58-year-old man, identified as Rafik A., was head of the interrogation unit of the National Defense Force (NDF) in the western Syrian city of Salamiyah in 2013 and 2014. The paramilitary NDF violently suppressed dissent against the Assad regime and imprisoned and tortured op…
The court in The Hague has sentenced a 58-year-old Syrian man from Druten to 26 years in prison for torture and abuse in Syria during the Assad regime. The 58-year-old Rafik al Q. was an interrogator in Syria, a high-ranking position within a militia affiliated with dictator Assad. The organization had its own prisons where detainees were severely mistreated. The man was suspected of torturing people in three detention centers around Salamiyah, …
Dutch Court Sentences Former Syrian Militia Member to 26 Years for Crimes Against Humanity
A district court in The Hague sentenced Rafik A., a former pro-Assad militia member, to 26 years in prison for torturing and raping prisoners. This case marks the first Dutch conviction for atrocities by pro-government forces in Syria. Rafik A. denied the charges but was convicted under universal jurisdiction.
Associated Press News
Syrian sentenced to 26 years in prison by Dutch court for crimes against humanity
A Dutch court has convicted a Syrian man of crimes against humanity, sentencing him to 26 years in prison for torturing and raping opponents of former President Bashar Assad in 2013-14.
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