Cousin of Former Syrian President Assad Faces 10 Charges in Landmark Trial
Al Jazeera Staff
Atef Najib, the cousin of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, has been charged with murder, torture, and responsibility for massacres in a second hearing in Damascus. The trial is the first effort to bring Assad-era officials to justice in Syria. Najib's arrest in January 2025 was a major breakthrough in the post-war transitional justice process.
Atef Najib, the former head of political security in Syria's southern Deraa province, has been charged with at least 10 counts, including murder, torture, and responsibility for massacres, in the second hearing of a landmark case.
The hearing took place on Sunday at the Criminal Court No. 4 in the capital Damascus. Najib appeared in a metal cage, wearing a striped prison uniform. He is accused of orchestrating a crackdown on anti-government protesters in Deraa during the 2011 uprising, which sparked a 14-year civil war. According to an Al Jazeera Mubasher correspondent, 75 plaintiffs have filed complaints and will provide testimony before the court.
The trial was attended by relatives of the victims, members of the National Transitional Justice Committee, and representatives from international legal and humanitarian organizations. After a roughly hour-long public session, the court moved to a closed hearing to protect certain witnesses.
Najib first appeared in court on April 26 for a preliminary hearing, but Sunday marked the first substantive trial session. The case represents Syria's first attempt to bring Assad-era officials to justice. Bashar al-Assad and his younger brother Maher, the former commander of the 4th Armored Division, are being tried in absentia. Assad fled to Russia in December 2024, and most members of his inner circle have also left Syria.
The government of interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa has faced criticism for delays in implementing post-war transitional justice processes, which have left an estimated 500,000 people dead. However, authorities are now believed to be acting more decisively to prosecute officials linked to Assad.
Najib oversaw political security in Deraa when teenagers who painted anti-government graffiti on school walls were arrested and tortured. That incident became a catalyst for the broader uprising. Forces from the General Security Service under the Interior Ministry arrested Najib in January 2025 during a security operation targeting remnants of the former regime in Latakia province. The arrest is considered one of the most significant detentions of former security officials, due to his sensitive security role in Deraa at the start of the uprising.
