Syrian society and social media users reacted widely to the decision by Damascus’s Fourth Criminal Court to sentence Atif Najib—the former head of the Political Security Directorate in Daraa province and Bashar Assad’s cousin—to death. The court also sentenced Bashar Assad and his brother Maher Assad to death in absentia, ordering that they be placed on an international wanted list. Atif Najib was found guilty of torturing numerous detainees and bearing direct responsibility for the deaths of many of them.
Najib’s name is particularly associated with the events of March 2011, when 15 children in Daraa were arrested and tortured for writing anti-government slogans on a school wall. The incident became one of the first sparks for protests that grew into the Syrian uprising and the subsequent war. Shortly before the verdict was announced, Najib arrived at the Fourth Criminal Court building; videos of his appearance spread across social media.
After the ruling was announced, takbirs and cheers rang out from mosques across Daraa province. Activists and bloggers called the verdict a historic day and the first step toward holding senior figures involved in suppressing Syrians accountable. Celebrations were also held outside the Palace of Justice in Damascus. Abd al-Basit Abd al-Latif, chairman of the National Transitional Justice Authority, said the ruling in Najib’s case was an important milestone on the path toward restoring victims’ rights and strengthening the rule of law, but not the end of the process.
Authorities and the public stressed that transitional justice must encompass everyone responsible for violations and war crimes, without exception. Amer al-Ali, head of the Central Authority for Oversight and Inspection, described the verdict as a response to years of killings, torture and the suffering of victims’ families, saying that the punishment was not an act of revenge but a means of restoring justice. Public reactions combined celebration that Daraa’s and the revolution’s demands had been fulfilled with calls to prosecute defendants in hiding and bring the process to completion, so that victims’ rights could be recognized and the country’s wounds healed.
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What role did Daraa play at the beginning of the Syrian uprising, and why did events in this city become a symbol of the revolution’s demands? — Daraa is regarded as the place where mass protests against the government began in March 2011. After teenagers were arrested and brutally mistreated for writing anti-government slogans on a wall, residents demanded their release and reforms. The crackdown intensified public anger and helped spread demonstrations throughout the country. Daraa therefore became a symbol of demands for freedom, dignity, justice and an end to repression.
What does transitional justice mean in the Syrian context, and how should it address crimes committed by the different sides in the conflict? — Transitional justice is a set of measures aimed at establishing the truth, holding perpetrators accountable, compensating victims and preventing the recurrence of crimes after war or political repression. In Syria, it should be impartial and cover alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by government forces, the armed opposition, extremist groups and other participants in the conflict. This may include independent investigations and trials, documentation of violations, efforts to locate the missing, the release of people held unlawfully, reparations for victims and guarantees of reform within state institutions.
Full version: From the “Daraa spark” to the gallows: Syrians react to Atif Najib’s death sentence