German and French prosecutors on Wednesday announced the arrest of three former Assad regime’s secret service officers on suspicion of torture and other crimes against humanity, the first such arrests in Europe against suspected figures in the Assad regime’s feared security service.
The suspect in France was arrested on Tuesday near Paris on suspicion of committing torture, crimes against humanity and war crimes between 2011 and 2013, Paris prosecutors said. Two other suspects, identified as Anwar R., aged 56, and Eyad A., 42, were arrested by federal police in Berlin and Rhineland-Palatinate state.
AFP reported the existence of coordination between German and French police to prosecute perpetrators of “war crimes” in Syria under the principle of “universal jurisdiction” which allows the two countries to hold accountable those who committed crimes outside their territory.
The French judiciary in November issued international arrest warrants for three senior Assad regime officers. They are Director of the National Security Bureau Ali Mamlouk; Head of Airforce Intelligence Jamil Hassan, and Head of the Air Force Intelligence Investigative Branch at Mazzah military airport, Abdel Salam Mahmoud.
In May, the German prosecutor issued the first international arrest warrants for senior Assad regime officials, including Jamil Hassan after former detainees filed a lawsuit against him. (Source: Syrian’s Coalition Media Department)
