At least 106 Syrian civil society organizations and groups have welcomed the November-14 France's international arrest warrant for the regime head Bashar al-Assad, accused of complicity in crimes against humanity over chemical attacks in 2013.
International warrants were also issued for the arrests of Assad's brother Maher, the de-facto chief of a Syrian elite military unit, and two armed forces generals: Ghassan Abbas, director of Branch 450 of the Syrian Scientific Studies and Research Center, and Bassam al-Hassan, advisor to the President of the Republic for strategic affairs and liaison officer between the presidential palace and the Scientific Research Center.
The AFP reported that Assad was also suspected of complicity in war crimes for the attacks, blamed by the opposition on the regime, that killed more than 1,400 people near Damascus in August 2013.
The signatory organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and victim associations welcome this unprecedented judicial measure, which is a significant advancement in the pursuit of justice for the victims of such brutal attacks. The issuance of these historical warrants is a direct outcome of the bravery of survivors and their unwavering commitment to justice, as they provided crucial testimonies and information that paved the way for this momentous decision.
The probe followed a legal complaint filed by the Syrian Centre for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM) NGO, lawyers' association Open Society Justice Initiative (OSJI) and the Syrian Archive, a body documenting human rights violations in Syria.
t's a huge development," SCM president Mazen Darwish said of the warrant for Assad's arrest.
The case against Assad and the others was backed by first-hand witness accounts and deep analysis of the Syrian military chain of command, Darwish said.
The signatory organizations demand:
Taking the necessary executive measures to ensure the implementation of these warrants and the arrest of suspects to be brought to justice, which would ensure the effectiveness of the steps taken in these judicial procedures, and oppose any attempt to use immunities to escape punishment for crimes committed in Syria or other conflict zones.
Other national judicial authorities to follow the example taken by the French judiciary, and take similar measures regarding other violations committed in Syria.
The immediate halt of all normalization processes with the Syrian regime taken by some governments.
These arrest warrants would not have been issued without the courage of the survivors of chemical attacks, whose role in supporting the path of justice deserves all respect and appreciation, so is the step taken by French judges, which emphasizes the importance of judicial integrity and independence, which we sought to have in future Syria, hoping that we hold all perpetrators of violations accountable before Syrian courts in the future.
Zaman al-Wasl played a role in providing the international human rights organizations that supervised this case with information regarding the file of war crimes involving chemical weapons.
Among the documents is an official document proving that Bashar al-Assad's regime still possesses a stockpile of dangerous military chemicals.
In July 2017, Zaman al-Wasl obtained the official document that revealed how the Syrian regime had transferred most of chemical weapons stockpiles in 2013 to secret depots held by Maher al-Assad, after the deadly Sarin gas attack on Eastern Ghouta suburbs.
Moving most of the chemical arsenal from the Institute 1000 in Jamraya to 105th Brigade near the Presidential Palace in Damascus was on September 19, 2013 at the same day the regime handed the UN Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) a list of chemical sites in the war-torn country, following the Eastern Ghouta Chemical attack on August 21, 2013 when more than 1460 died in the nerve gas attack, two weeks before the arrival of the United Nations inspectors on October 3.
The document reveals the Assad regime's manipulation of the issue of handing over its entire stock of chemical weapons, a few days before the arrival of UN experts to begin the steps to disarm the regime's chemicals, in implementation of a Russian-American deal concluded between the two parties, and which was framed in a binding UN resolution bearing the number 2118.
The document consists of a book issued by Institute 1000 in Jamraya (Damascus countryside), signed by its director, Dr. Muhammad Khaled Nasri, and addressed to the General Director of the Center for Scientific Studies and Research. The document comes in response to a previous letter, in which the Director General of the Center ordered the nomination of the “Chairman of the Supervisory Committee” for the process of transferring the stock of chemical materials deposited at the Institute “1000” to the warehouses of the 105th Brigade, which is the most famous and dangerous brigade of the Republican Guard, which is responsible for protecting Bashar al-Assad and guarding his palaces. .
In his document, Nasri proposes naming “Lieutenant Colonel Engineer Firas Ahmed, Head of the Institute’s Security Office 1000,” as head of the committee supervising the transfer of chemical stock.
Lieutenant Colonel Ahmed had the authority to choose whomever seems appropriate to carry out the transfer mission in the most appropriate manner and with the required confidentiality.”
This was not the only case that the Zaman al-Wasl contributed to, according to editor-in-chief Fathi Bayoud, who revealed that the Syrian news site had a role in revealing information about more than 15 cases proving the regime’s involvement in war crimes against the Syrians, as it provided international human rights organizations with information and evidence. Influential in this regard, the most important of which were crimes committed by the Assad regime using chemical weapons.
Civil Organizations and Groups Signatories
Access Center for Human Rights (ACHR)
Adel Centre For Human rights
Al Aseel Association for Developmen
Al baghooz Hope for Development
Al-Kawakibi Center for Transitional Justice and Human Rights
Alseeraj Sweden
Amal Alfurat organization
Amal Healing and Advocacy Center
Anwar Al Ghad Organization
Association of Victims of Chemical Weapons
Badael
Baladn
Bassmet Wattan Center
Baytna
Be free team
Better Tomorrow organization
Caesar Families Association
Center for Civil Society and Democracy, CCSD
Center for Extremism Studies
Change Makers
Civil Center in Atarb
Community Solidarity Organization
Deirna Organization
Diaa Alamal Association
Do Not Suffocate The Truth
Dozana
Ebdaa organization for Development
Elaf for reilaf and development
Enma Aljazera organization
Enmaa
Enmaa Alfourat
Environment Protection and Sustainable Development Organization
Eve Humanitarian Association
Families of Truth and Justice
Finjan
Fraternity Foundation for Human Rights -FFHR
Future Makers Team
Hajeen organization
Haneen.alfurat
Hevy for relief and development
Holm for Development
Hooz Center for Social Development
HOPE LINKS for DEVELOPMENT
Hope Makers
House of Citizenship Organization
Hurras Network
Ishtar Development Organization
Jana Watan
Jozour Syria Civil Society Organization
Justice and sustainable development
Justice-paths
Kesh Malek
Khutwa association
Kurdish Human Rights Committee – Observer
Kurdish International Committee for Human Rights
LACU
Lawyers and Doctors for human rights
Local Development and Small-Projects Support (LDSPS)
Mihad
Mnemonic – Syrian Archive
Multka Alnhren Organization
Nawras development organization
Pioneers of peace
Pro-justice organization
Quality for Research and Development QRD
Rising for freedom
Safe land
Sanabel Al Furat Development Organization
Sawaeed Organization for Development
SEMA
Sphere organization for Studies and Development S.S.D
Syria Faith initiative
Syrian American Council (SAC)
Syrian British Consortium
Syrian center for legal studies and research
Syrıan Expatriate Medical ASSOCCIATION
Syrian feminist society
Syrian Forum
Syrian Lawyers Aggrigation
Syrian Swedish Democratic Forum SSDF-Syrisk-Svenska Demokratiförbundet
Syrians Gathered
Taafi initiative
Tara organization
TASTAKEL
Tayif Humanitarian Organization
The Day After
The Lebanese Center for Human Rights (CLDH)
The Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM)
The Syrian Legal Development Programme
The Syrian Swedish Association
Togther For Aljarnyia
Tree of Life organization
Union of Revolutionary Bureaus ( URB)
Union of syrian coordinations around the world
Vision organization
Women For Peace
Women Now for Development
Women’s Organization for Transitional Justice
Zahrat alfurat Organization
Zameen for development and peace-building
جمعية الأصدقاء للاغاثة والتنمية.
جمعية ماري للثقافة والفنون والبيئة.
مركز الدفاع عن الحريات .
مركز الماسة للدراسات والأبحاث والاستشارات والتحكيم والتدريب .
منظمة سارا لمناهضة العنف ضد المراة.
منظمة معا نبني الوطن .
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