Former Syrian Vice President Rifaat al-Assad will stand trial in Switzerland on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity

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bread-27806" title="Former Syrian Vice President Rifaat al-Assad will stand trial in Switzerland on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity">Former Syrian Vice President Rifaat al-Assad will stand trial in Switzerland on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity</strong></li></ul></div></div></div> <div class="row content-row"> <div class="col-md-12 text-xs-right social-sharing"> <span class="tri-share-icon"> Share This: <i class="fa fa-share-alt" aria-hidden="true"></i> </span> <div class="hidden addthis_custom_sharing"></div> </div> <div class="the-content col-md-9"> <h1 class="latest-title orange text-uppercase nospacebelow"> Former Syrian Vice President Rifaat al-Assad will stand trial in Switzerland on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity </h1> <div class="sm-date orange">12.03.2024 </div> <div class="clr20"></div> <div class="latest-body"> <p><strong>(Geneva, 12 March 2024) – Former Syrian Vice-President <a href="https://trialinternational.org/case/rifaat-al-assad/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rifaat al-Assad</a> will stand trial in Switzerland for war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has just </strong><a href="https://www.admin.ch/gov/en/start/documentation/media-releases.msg-id-100363.html"><strong>charged</strong></a><strong> him with ordering homicides, acts of torture, cruel treatments and illegal detentions perpetrated in the course of the February 1982 massacre in the city of Hama, Syria. With today’s indictment, the victims can finally look forward to justice being done. Rifaat al-Assad, the uncle of current Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, will be one of the highest-ranking government officials ever to be tried for international crimes based on the principle of universal jurisdiction.</strong></p> <figure id="attachment_25705" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-25705" style="width: 1997px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" class="wp-image-25705 size-full" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Rifaat_al-Assad_commander_of_the_Defense_Corps_in_the_1980s.png" alt="" width="1997" height="1070" srcset="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Rifaat_al-Assad_commander_of_the_Defense_Corps_in_the_1980s.png 1997w, https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Rifaat_al-Assad_commander_of_the_Defense_Corps_in_the_1980s-300x161.png 300w, https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Rifaat_al-Assad_commander_of_the_Defense_Corps_in_the_1980s-1024x549.png 1024w, https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Rifaat_al-Assad_commander_of_the_Defense_Corps_in_the_1980s-768x411.png 768w, https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Rifaat_al-Assad_commander_of_the_Defense_Corps_in_the_1980s-1536x823.png 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1997px) 100vw, 1997px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-25705" class="wp-caption-text">Rifaat al-Assad, commander of the Defense brigades in the 1980s</figcaption></figure> <p>After issuing an international arrest warrant against Rifaat al-Assad in November 2021, the OAG indicted him on 11 March 2024 for war crimes and crimes against humanity. The proceedings concern the massive war crimes committed in the city of Hama, Syria, in February 1982 by the Defense brigades. The three weeks siege and assault of the city led to the death of between 10,000 and 40,000 people, many of whom civilians, as well as to numerous acts of torture, sexual violence and enforced disappearances. At the time, Rifaat al-Assad was the commander of the Defense brigades, the Vice-President of Syria, as well as the head of operations in Hama.</p> <p>“<em>At the beginning, I could not even dream about having Rifaat al-Assad being brought to trial. The indictment shows that such powerful persons can be brought to justice and I want everyone to know what the al-Assad regime did to the Syrian people. My fight is for all the Syrians”,</em> said one of the three plaintiffs in the case, expressing the feeling of all survivors of the assault, who have been waiting for this moment for over 40 years now.</p> <p>In 2013, TRIAL International filed a criminal denunciation in Switzerland against Rifaat al-Assad, that quickly led to the opening of a formal investigation. Since then, the accused, who was residing in neighboring France, persistently refused to testify before the Swiss prosecuting authorities, under various pretexts. He fled back to Syria in October 2021, to escape a 4-year prison sentence handed down by French courts for various financial crimes, but also his forthcoming audition by the OAG, that was about to be organized, based on a mutual legal assistance request from Switzerland to France.</p> <p>Philip Grant, Executive Director of TRIAL International welcomed the historical indictment of such a prominent figure: “<em>It’s another step for</em> <em>justice for the Syrian people! This case, along with past and ongoing groundbreaking proceedings, notably in </em><a href="https://www.ecchr.eu/en/press-release/syria-verdict-anwar-r/"><em>Germany</em></a><em> and </em><a href="https://scm.bz/en/french-magistrates-issue-arrest-warrants-for-the-syrian-president-and-three-associates-for-chemical-weapons-attacks/"><em>France</em></a><em>, is looking at the responsibility of the highest Syrian officials and strongly contributes to shedding light on the crimes committed by the al-Assad’s clan against its own people during the past decades</em>”.</p> <p>The criminal investigation and forthcoming trial against the so-called “Butcher of Hama” are possible thanks to the application of the principle of <a href="https://trialinternational.org/topics-post/universal-jurisdiction/">universal jurisdiction</a>, which allows States to investigate and prosecute persons suspected of having committed international crimes, irrespective of where the crimes were committed and the nationality of either suspects or victims.</p> <p>TRIAL International recalls the Swiss authorities that time is of the essence and plays against justice, as Rifaat al-Assad is aging. More than 40 years after the massacre of Hama, Rifaat al-Assad’s trial must take place at the earliest possible moment, irrespective of the fact that Rifaat al-Assad will very likely decide not to attend his own trial.</p> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-3 right-sidebar "> <div class="media-contacts"> <h3 class="orange text-uppercase"> Media Contacts </h3> <div class="contact"> <div class="contact-name"> <strong>Anja Härtwig (EN, FR, DE)</strong> </div> <div class="contact-details"> media@trialinternational.org<br /> +41 22 519 03 96 </div> </div> </div> <div class="downloads"> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right white"> <span class="tag">PDF</span> </div> <div class="title"> Frequently asked Questions Rifaat al-Assad case </div> <div class="download-file"> <a onclick="ga('send', 'event', 'File', 'download', 'Frequently asked Questions Rifaat al-Assad case');" href="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/QA_Rifaat-al-Assad_EN-1.pdf" target="_blank"> <i class="fa fa-4x fa-file-pdf-o"></i> </a> </div> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right white"> <span class="tag">PDF</span> </div> <div class="title"> PR Indictment of Rifaat al-Assad </div> <div class="download-file"> <a onclick="ga('send', 'event', 'File', 'download', 'PR Indictment of Rifaat al-Assad');" href="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/CP_Acte-accusation_Rifaat-al-Assad_EN.pdf" target="_blank"> <i class="fa fa-4x fa-file-pdf-o"></i> </a> </div> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right white"> <span class="tag">PDF</span> </div> <div class="title"> CP Mise en accusation de Rifaat al-Assad </div> <div class="download-file"> <a onclick="ga('send', 'event', 'File', 'download', 'CP Mise en accusation de Rifaat al-Assad');" href="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/CP_Acte-accusation_Rifaat-al-Assad_FR.pdf" target="_blank"> <i class="fa fa-4x fa-file-pdf-o"></i> </a> </div> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right white"> <span class="tag">PDF</span> </div> <div class="title"> PR Indictment of Rifaat al-Assad - 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class="tag" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/">Reports and publications</a> </div> <div class="title"> <h3><a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/policy-submission-victims-and-survivors-rights-in-a-convention-on-the-prevention-and-punishment-of-crimes-against-humanity/">Policy brief: Victims' and Survivors' Rights in a Convention on the Prevention and Puni...</a> </h3> <small>03.06.2024</small> </div> <div class="wrapper"> <div class="country"> <img width="20" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/images/icons/globe.svg" alt="Globe" /> Global </div> <div class="summary"> The policy brief entitled “Victims’ and Survivors’ Rights in a Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes aga... <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/policy-submission-victims-and-survivors-rights-in-a-convention-on-the-prevention-and-punishment-of-crimes-against-humanity/"><i class="fa fa-arrow-right"></i></a> </div> <a 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container-1200"> <div class="col-md-6 col-lg-3 slider-item"> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right"> <a class="tag" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/news-releases/">News releases</a> </div> <div class="title"> <h3><a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/gambian-former-minister-of-interior-ousman-sonko-convicted-of-crimes-against-humanity-in-historic-swiss-trial/">Gambian former Minister of Interior Ousman Sonko sentenced to 20 years in prison for cr...</a> </h3> <small>16.05.2024</small> </div> <div class="wrapper"> <div class="country"> <img width="20" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/images/icons/globe.svg" alt="Globe" /> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/countries-post/gambia/">The Gambia</a> </div> <div class="summary"> (Geneva, 15 May 2024) – Ousman Sonko, Gambian former Minister of Interior, was convicted today of crimes against humanit... <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/gambian-former-minister-of-interior-ousman-sonko-convicted-of-crimes-against-humanity-in-historic-swiss-trial/"><i class="fa fa-arrow-right"></i></a> </div> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/gambian-former-minister-of-interior-ousman-sonko-convicted-of-crimes-against-humanity-in-historic-swiss-trial/"><img src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/sonko_guilty-1024x535.png" alt="Featured Image" class="img-fluid" /></a> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-6 col-lg-3 slider-item"> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right"> <a class="tag" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/news-releases/">News releases</a> </div> <div class="title"> <h3><a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/drc-conviction-for-forced-pregnancy-and-other-crimes-against-humanity-for-warlord-ndarumanga/">DRC: Conviction for forced pregnancy and other crimes against humanity for warlord Ndar...</a> </h3> <small>27.03.2024</small> </div> <div class="wrapper"> <div class="country"> <img width="20" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/images/icons/globe.svg" alt="Globe" /> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/countries-post/democratic-republic-of-the-congo/">Democratic Republic of the Congo</a> </div> <div class="summary"> On May 15th 2023, the Military Tribunal of Uvira sentenced Munyololo Mbao, alias Ndarumanga, former leader of a faction... <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/drc-conviction-for-forced-pregnancy-and-other-crimes-against-humanity-for-warlord-ndarumanga/"><i class="fa fa-arrow-right"></i></a> </div> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/drc-conviction-for-forced-pregnancy-and-other-crimes-against-humanity-for-warlord-ndarumanga/"><img src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/image00010-1-1024x461.png" alt="Featured Image" class="img-fluid" /></a> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-6 col-lg-3 slider-item"> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right"> <a class="tag" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/">Reports and publications</a> </div> <div class="title"> <h3><a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/towards-a-convention-on-prevention-and-punishment-of-crimes-against-humanity-recommandations-to-states/">Towards a Convention on Prevention and Punishment of Crimes against Humanity: Recommand...</a> </h3> <small>05.03.2024</small> </div> <div class="wrapper"> <div class="country"> <img width="20" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/images/icons/globe.svg" alt="Globe" /> Global </div> <div class="summary"> Unlike other international crimes, such as war crimes, genocide, torture and enforced disappearance, there is still no i... <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/towards-a-convention-on-prevention-and-punishment-of-crimes-against-humanity-recommandations-to-states/"><i class="fa fa-arrow-right"></i></a> </div> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/towards-a-convention-on-prevention-and-punishment-of-crimes-against-humanity-recommandations-to-states/"><img src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/CACH_brief_featured-v2-1024x415.png" alt="Featured Image" class="img-fluid" /></a> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-6 col-lg-3 slider-item"> <div class="text-uppercase text-xs-right"> <a class="tag" href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/news/">News</a> </div> <div class="title"> <h3><a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/questions-and-answers-on-on-first-german-trial-for-serious-crimes-committed-in-the-gambia/">Questions and Answers on first German trial for serious crimes committed in The Gambia</a> </h3> <small>28.02.2024</small> </div> <div class="wrapper"> <div class="country"> <img width="20" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/images/icons/globe.svg" alt="Globe" /> <a 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Bai L. is a 48-year-old Gambian citizen who is alleged to... <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/questions-and-answers-on-on-first-german-trial-for-serious-crimes-committed-in-the-gambia/"><i class="fa fa-arrow-right"></i></a> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="container arrows-container"> <a class="arrow-left" href="#latest-carousel" role="button" data-slide="prev"> <i class="slide-prev fa fa-chevron-left"></i> </a> <a class="arrow-right" href="#latest-carousel" role="button" data-slide="next"> <i class="slide-next fa fa-chevron-right"></i> </a> </div> </div> <div class="clearfix"></div> <div class="container container-1200 text-uppercase text-xs-center view-all"> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/latest/news-releases/">View All</a> </div> </div> <form name="txt_download_form" id="txt_download_form" target="_blank" action="https://trialinternational.org/latest-post/former-syrian-vice-president-rifaat-al-assad-will-stand-trial-in-switzerland-on-charges-of-war-crimes-and-crimes-against-humanity/" method="post"> <input name="filename" type="hidden" value="former-syrian-vice-president-rifaat-al-assad-will-stand-trial-in-switzerland-on-charges-of-war-crimes-and-crimes-against-humanity" /> <input name="html_content" id="html_content" type="hidden" value="" /> </form> </main><footer id="footer" class="footer"> <div class="container"> <div class="col-sm-12 col-md-3 address orange"> <p>TRIAL International<br /> Rue de Lyon 95<br /> 1203 Geneva<br /> Switzerland </p> <p>t: +41 22 321 61 10<br /> e: info@trialinternational.org<br /> trialinternational.org</p> <p>IBAN: CH85 0900 0000 1716 2954 3</p> </div> <div class="col-sm-12 col-md-6 subscribe"> <div class="title orange">Stay up to date </div> <div class="text"> <p>Subscribe to our monthly newsletter on TRIAL International’s activities and the latest developments in international justice.</p> </div> <form class="footer-subscribe-form form-inline" method="get" action="/newsletter"> <input type="email" name="subscribe_email" placeholder="Enter your email" class="form-control"> <button type="submit" class="btn text-uppercase">Submit</button> </form> </div> <div class="col-sm-12 col-md-3 stay-connected text-md-right"> <div class="title orange">Stay connected </div> <div class="social"> <a href="//twitter.com/Trial" target="_blank">Twitter <i class="fa fa-twitter"></i></a> </div> <div class="social"> <a href="//linkedin.com/company/trial-international" target="_blank">Linkedin <i class="fa fa-linkedin"></i></a> </div> <div class="social"> <a href="//facebook.com/trial.org" target="_blank">Facebook <i class="fa fa-facebook"></i></a> </div> <div class="social"> <a href="https://trialinternational.org/feed/" target="_blank">RSS Feed <i class="fa fa-rss"></i></a> </div> </div> </div> </footer> <div id="sea-bed" class="sea-bed container"> <span>©2024 trialinternational.org</span> | <span>All rights reserved</span> | <span><a href="https://trialinternational.org/privacy-policy/">Privacy Policy</a></span> | <span><a href="https://trialinternational.org/statutes/">Statutes</a></span> | <span class="acw"><a target="_blank" href="http://acw.uk.com">Designed and Produced by ACW</a></span> </div> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/tether-1.3.1/js/tether.min.js?ver=20160422" id="tri-tether-js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/bootstrapv4.0.0-alpha.2/js/bootstrap.min.js?ver=20160421" id="tri-bootstrap-js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/js/tri-header.js?ver=20160421" id="tri-header-js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://trialinternational.org/wp-content/themes/tri/assets/js/tri.js?ver=1728284652" id="tri-js-js"></script>  <div id="cookie-notice" role="dialog" class="cookie-notice-hidden cookie-revoke-hidden cn-position-bottom" aria-label="Cookie Notice" style="background-color: rgba(50,50,58,1);"><div class="cookie-notice-container" style="color: #fff"><span id="cn-notice-text" class="cn-text-container">We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best browsing experience on our website. 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Former Syrian Vice President Rifaat al-Assad will stand trial in Switzerland on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity - TRIAL International