French judicial authorities have issued a new arrest warrant for Syria’s ousted leader Bashar Assad, accusing him of complicity in war crimes related to a deadly 2017 attack on civilians, according to reports from French media on Wednesday.
The warrant, dated January 20, ties Assad, the former head of Syria’s armed forces, to a bombing in Deraa that year which killed Salah Abou Nabout, a 59-year-old Franco-Syrian national, a legal source told AFP.
Ongoing Investigation and Previous Arrest Warrants
The investigation into the 2017 attack began in 2018, leading to arrest warrants against six senior Syrian military officials allegedly acting on Assad’s orders.
“This case represents the culmination of a long fight for justice, in which my family and I believed from the beginning,” said Omar Abou Nabout, the victim’s son. He expressed hope that “a trial will take place and that the perpetrators will be arrested and judged, wherever they are.”
France had previously issued an arrest warrant for Assad in November 2023 over chemical weapon attacks in 2013 that killed more than a thousand civilians. At the time, Assad’s presidency granted him immunity from prosecution, but his ouster in December removed those protections.
Accountability and International Involvement
Assad fled to Russia after opposition forces seized control of Damascus, ending his 24-year rule. The latest warrant follows meetings between prosecutor Karim Khan of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and Syria’s new leader, Ahmad al-Sharaa, to discuss accountability for crimes committed during Assad’s regime.
The ICC is reportedly exploring mechanisms to ensure justice for the victims of the atrocities that marked Assad’s rule.
