On Thursday, in the first trial of its kind worldwide, a German court convicted the most high-ranking Syrian officer yet of crimes against humanity. He was found guilty of overseeing the torture of 4,000 people, which resulted in 27 deaths (which he denies).
It was a painstaking two-year-long investigative process that culminated in a life sentence, and a landmark and rare victory for torture survivors.
The UK special representative for Syria dubbed it “historic” and “a step towards justice and accountability for the Syrian people”. The British ambassador to Germany tweeted that the UK advocates for “the consistent prosecution of war crimes under criminal law”.
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