A German court on Wednesday sentenced a former member of a Syrian militant group closely linked to former Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad to 10 years in prison for crimes against humanity and war crimes.
The verdict shows that the man, a former leader of Syria’s Shabiha militia, identified only as Ahmad H in court documents, took part in serious abuses of civilians and looting in Damascus during the bloody civil war between 2012 and 2015.
The militia, working with a branch of al-Assad’s military intelligence, had to violently suppress opposition efforts.
At the time, the front line in the Syrian civil war ran through the Tadamon neighborhood of Damascus. The suspects arbitrarily deported civilians at checkpoints, who were then forced to carry sandbags for government forces, sometimes under fire.
The court in Hamburg ruled that forced labor was a form of slavery. According to the chairman, several victims who testified during the trial reported that they were abused by the suspect.
Nearby, he used his position as a militia leader to free goods from intimidated store owners.
The court heard more than 25 witnesses. The suspect denied the accusations.
According to the court, the man had entered Germany in February 2016 and applied for asylum.
A Syrian roommate in a shelter recognized him and reported him to the authorities. He was arrested by police on August 2 in the northern German city of Bremen.
The verdict is not yet final and can be appealed.
