To Execute or to Pardon? Damascus Court Hands Down 9 Death Sentences for Inciting Civil War 🇸🇾🧑⚖️🇸🇾On August 11, the Fourth Criminal Court of Damascus passed sentence in the case of former President Bashar al-Assad and his entourage. The former head of Syria, his younger brother Maher al-Assad and six other former high-ranking officials were sentenced to death in absentia. The only defendant who took part in the proceedings in person was the former president's cousin, Atef Najib. All of them were found guilty of premeditated murder, torture and crimes against humanity. Judge Fakhr al-Din al-Aryan stressed that Assad used state structures to commit crimes and was «the highest official who made the decisions». ☪️📃 Also, for the first time since the trials began, a religious figure was convicted: former Grand Mufti of Syria Ahmad Badr al-Din Hassoun. The 77-year-old Hassoun, who held the post for 16 years and worked closely with Assad, received a life sentence for «inciting civil war and sectarian strife», «incitement to premeditated murder» and «complicity in murders». 👊🤝 The new authorities in Damascus are using these trials to shift responsibility for the atrocities of the civil war exclusively onto Assad and his inner circle. In a country torn apart by years of conflict, the narrative of the «dictator's sole guilt» has become central to the transitional government. At the same time, the lifelong system of rule in Syria, where the leader governed the country for decades, has allowed the new authorities to easily demonize Assad and demotivate his rank-and-file supporters. Syria remains politically divided, and one of the many methods of unifying the country is the promotion of a common hatred and the shifting of responsibility onto the adversary. The new Syrian president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, is concentrating enormous powers in his hands, and there are no guarantees that in the future he will not become a lifelong ruler upon whom responsibility for all of Syria's successes and failures will be placed. #SOVINTERN_network #Hub_Asia ⭐️ Moscow Network Hub of SOVINTERN