Who Is Bashar Al-Assad, Ex-Syrian President Sentenced To Death Over War Crimes

Former Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad has been sentenced to death in absentia by a local court over charges linked to “war crimes and crimes against humanity” committed during the country's 14-year conflict.

Assad, currently outside Syria, was convicted in a case involving violence carried out during the conflict, killing around 500,000 people. His younger brother, Maher Al-Assad, a former senior Syrian military commander, was also sentenced to death in the same case.

Assad's maternal cousin Atef Najib, a former Syrian army brigadier general, was also handed the death penalty. According to the court, Najib was involved in the intentional killing of children under the age of 15 and torture that resulted in deaths.

The sentences were handed down in the absence of the three men.

Who is Bashar Al-Assad?

Bashar Al-Assad was born in 1965 and became Syria's president in 2000 after the death of his father, Hafez Al-Assad. His father had ruled Syria for nearly 30 years, and Bashar continued the family's control over the country, according to Reuters.

Assad belonged to the Alawite sect, a minority group in Syria, where most people are Sunni Muslims. Under his leadership, Syria remained a close ally of Iran and took a strong anti-US and anti-Israel position.

The biggest crisis for Assad's rule began during the 2011 Arab Spring, when Syrians, much like their fellow Arabs in neighbouring countries, took to the streets and demanded democracy and political change. The government responded with a violent crackdown. 

The protests soon turned into a full-scale civil war. The war went on for more than a decade and killed around 500,000 people. Millions of Syrians were also forced to leave their homes.

Assad stayed in power for most of the war with help from Iran and Russia. In December 2024, rebel forces launched a major attack and overthrew his government.

Assad fled the capital, Damascus, for Moscow, where Russia gave him refuge. His fall ended more than 20 years of his rule and more than five decades of Assad family rule in Syria.