Image source: flickr
The month of May will witness the start of the trial of Syrian regime officials Ali Mamlouk, Jamil Hassan, and Abdel Salam Mahmoud before the French Court of Assizes, after 13 months of waiting.
The court accuses the regime officials of complicity in committing crimes against humanity and war crimes, including the killing of Syrian-French citizens Mazen Dabbagh and his son Patrick, after their arrest in 2013.
The three defendants, even if absent, have the right to be represented by a lawyer of their choice. The trial will be public and presided over by three professional judges, extending over four days (from May 21 to May 24, 2024), before the Court of Assizes in Paris.
After the testimonies of the civil parties and witnesses are presented, the verdict will be issued on the same day (the last day of the trial). If the defendants are found guilty, the Paris Court of Assizes will issue new international arrest warrants based on their convictions.
Two French judges ordered the trial of the three defendants on April 4, 2023, and international arrest warrants have been issued against them. They will be tried in absentia, and if any of them are apprehended, they will have the right to appeal their conviction and be retried before the lower court.
Who are the accused?
Major General Ali Mamlouk serves as an advisor to the Presidency of the Syrian Arab Republic and was the head of the Syrian National Security Bureau, the highest intelligence authority in Syria, since 2012. Previously, he was the director of the Syrian General Intelligence Directorate (State Security Directorate). He is listed on the US and EU sanctions lists and is accused by human rights organizations of being responsible for and overseeing Syria’s chemical arsenal and its use to eliminate political detainees in Tadmor Prison.
Major General Jamil Hassan was the director of the Syrian Air Force Intelligence Directorate and held this position when Dabbagh and his son disappeared.
The Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression considers Hassan to be one of the main supporters and supervisors of the violent military crackdown on the protests that began in 2011. He is accused of involvement in multiple crimes of killing, torture, and violations against civilians.
Major General Abdel Salam Mahmoud is in charge of investigations at the Air Force Intelligence Directorate and directly oversees the interrogation and torture operations in the notorious Air Force Intelligence prisons. Under his orders and direct supervision, a large number of Syrians have been arrested, tortured, and killed.
Who are the two victims?
Patrick Dabbagh was a student at the Faculty of Arts and Humanities in Damascus, born in 1993.
Mazen Dabbagh was a senior educational advisor at the French School in Damascus, born in 1956.
Mazen and his son Patrick Dabbagh were arrested in November 2013 by officers reportedly belonging to the Syrian Air Force Intelligence. Mazen Dabbagh’s brother-in-law, who was arrested at the same time but released after two days, stated that the two men were taken to Mezzeh prison, where reports indicate that torture takes place.
There were no signs that they were still alive until the regime announced their deaths in August 2018. According to the death certificates, Patrick died on January 21, 2014, and Mazen on November 25, 2017.
The Same Justice organization demands the release of all detainees held by the Syrian regime and calls for the prosecution of “war criminals” and all perpetrators of crimes against humanity, ensuring that the victims’ families receive justice.
