The Military Criminal Court in Aleppo announced verdicts on Thursday during the second hearing in a case concerning violations in areas of Syria’s coastal region. Ten defendants appeared before the court: three former military personnel and officers of the ousted regime, and seven employees of the Ministry of Defense. The hearing is part of ongoing proceedings into events on the coast, involving both serious crimes and lesser charges.
The harshest sentences were handed down to two representatives of the ousted regime, Al-Wadah Ismail and Mahir Ali, who were sentenced to death. Mahir Othman was sentenced to 12 years in prison. Muhammad Bakkour of the Ministry of Defense’s 82nd Division received a 20-year sentence for intentional homicide. Ammar Abd al-Aal of the 54th Division was sentenced to three years for torture, while Captain Shanan and Khalid al-Muhaymid, also of the same division, each received two years for participating in torture. Mahmoud Shahin received two months for causing harm, with all defendants receiving credit for time already spent in pretrial detention. Abd al-Raouf Bakr of the 50th Division and Muhammad Zarzouri of the 54th Division were acquitted of intentional homicide charges due to insufficient evidence.
The current hearing continued a series of verdicts in the case. On September 17 last year, the court issued its first rulings, including death by hanging, life imprisonment, a 20-year prison sentence, and the acquittal of one defendant. The trial is being held at the Palace of Justice in Aleppo under Judge Zakaria Bakkara. Nine hearings have taken place since November 18, 2025. A total of 14 people are involved in the case: seven linked to the former regime are charged with crimes against personnel of the General Security Administration and Ministry of Defense forces, while another seven face charges related to crimes against civilians. Files and correspondence extracted from the defendants’ mobile phones were used as evidence.
The case dates back to the bloody events on Syria’s coast in March 2025, when groups of remnants of Bashar al-Assad’s regime attacked state security agencies and military checkpoints. Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa subsequently announced the creation of a national commission of inquiry and fact-finding to determine the causes and circumstances of the events and investigate violations against civilians. In July last year, the commission submitted its final report to the president after visiting the affected areas and collecting hundreds of testimonies in rural parts of Latakia and Tartus. The announcement of verdicts in the case is continuing.
News Analysis
Why are Latakia and Tartus considered strongholds of the Alawite community, and how is this connected to the particular significance of the March 2025 events on Syria’s coast? — Latakia and Tartus are Syria’s historical and demographic centers of the Alawite community. Alawites are a religious minority, often described as a Shiite sect, traditionally concentrated in the coastal mountains. Under Hafez and Bashar al-Assad, the Alawite elite dominated the security services and political system, and these provinces became the regime’s main stronghold. After Assad’s fall in December 2024, the coast remained a base for supporters of the former authorities. In March 2025, Syria’s new authorities conducted operations against remnants of the old regime and armed groups, leading to clashes and mass casualties among the Alawite population. These events are particularly significant because they revealed the depth of sectarian tensions along the coast, the fragility of the new government’s control, and the risk of a renewed insurgency. The region is also strategically important because of the ports of Latakia and Tartus, as well as the presence of Russian military facilities, although their status after Assad’s fall remains unclear. Thus, March 2025 became a test of the new authorities’ ability to integrate or suppress the Alawite enclave.
What are Syria’s 82nd, 54th, and 50th Ministry of Defense divisions, and what role do they play in the country’s current security structure? — These are new divisions formed as part of the reorganization of Syria’s Ministry of Defense after the old Syrian Arab Army was dissolved in late 2024. They are being created as integrated formations made up of former opposition factions, officers who changed sides, and new recruits, with the aim of replacing the armed forces of the former regime. The 82nd Division operates in the coastal region, including Latakia and Tartus, and played a central role in the March 2025 operations on the coast. The 54th and 50th divisions are regional formations deployed in central and northern Syria, including areas around Hama, Aleppo, and Idlib, and are responsible for maintaining security and consolidating government control. In the current security structure, they serve as the Ministry of Defense’s principal ground forces and report to the central government in Damascus. They reflect the new authorities’ attempt to build a national army out of disparate armed groups, although problems involving loyalty, coordination, and sectarian balance remain.
Full version: Death and prison sentences handed down to those involved in violations on Syria’s coast