After three and a half years of intensive evidentiary proceedings, the Frankfurt Higher Regional Court today sentenced the former Syrian doctor Alaa M. for war crimes and crimes against humanity to life imprisonment. At the same time, the court found a particular severity of guilt, and imposed subsequent preventive detention. Between 2011 and 2012, he tortured, sexually abused and, in two cases, killed detainees in a military hospital in Homs and in a military intelligence prison. This marks the end of the most extensive trial to date in Germany addressing the crimes of the Assad regime in Syria.
“After 14 years under the scourge of tyranny, oppression and injustice, we Syrians can now dream of freedom and justice again. This verdict brings hope that justice is possible, not only for me, but for all survivors,” says a joint plaintiff, represented by ECCHR partner lawyer René Bahns.
Alaa M. was arrested in June 2020 on strong suspicion of committing crimes against humanity. As a doctor and member of the intelligence service, he is alleged to have been involved in sexual violence, torture and the killing of civilians in several facilities – including the notorious Mezzeh Military Hospital No. 601, known as the “Human Slaughterhouse,” where the so-called Caesar photos were taken, Military Hospital No. 608, and the prison of Department 261 of the Military Intelligence Directorate in Homs.
Over the course of 186 trial days, more than 50 witnesses and numerous expert witnesses were heard. Their testimonies provided a comprehensive picture of the role of Syrian military hospitals in the Assad regime's system of torture, as well as the systematic attack on the civilian population and the violent suppression of protests in Homs, particularly in the Baba Amr district.
The trial immediately followed the world's first trial on state torture in Syria before the Higher Regional Court of Koblenz, in which the former Syrian officer Anwar Raslan was sentenced to life imprisonment for crimes against humanity. ECCHR supported torture survivors and their relatives in the legal process at this trial and in other proceedings in Germany, Austria, Sweden and Norway.
Further investigations into crimes against humanity are currently underway in Syria. One of them deals with the violent suppression of a peaceful demonstration against the Syrian regime and the repeated mistreatment of civilians by a local militia in the Palestinian neighborhood of Yarmouk in Damascus. In addition, a suspected member of the al-Khatib branch of the Syrian intelligence service was arrested in May 2025.
“The judgment against Alaa M. makes it clear that proceedings based on the principle of universal jurisdiction are now an integral part of case law in Germany. This verdict is an important step in the fight against impunity and sends a clear signal to the perpetrators of the Syrian regime. My hope is that such judgments will one day also serve as a basis in Syria itself to bring those primarily responsible for one of the most atrocious crimes of our time to justice. Until that point, they serve to close a crucial gap in the criminal justice process and are an indispensable part of international efforts for justice”, says Patrick Kroker, Senior Legal Advisor at ECCHR.
For a long time, proceedings based on the principle of universal jurisdiction – such as this one against Alaa M. – were the only way for those affected by the crimes of the Syrian regime to seek justice. The fall of the Assad regime opens up the previously unthinkable possibility that Syrians themselves will in the future be able to push for justice in their own country:
“This verdict marks a milestone in Syria's history, separating a past laden with blood and injustice from a future that promises to be more just and equitable. It is an acknowledgment of the countless lives crushed under torture in the Assad regime's prisons. With the fall of the regime, there is an urgent need to restructure state institutions, especially the security, military, and judicial institutions, to ensure their independence, transparency, and full compliance with international human rights standards”, says Fadel Abdulghany, founder and director of the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR).
ECCHR has been working intensively to address international crimes in Syria since 2012. You can find out more about the work of ECCHR and our partners on torture and the crimes committed by the Syrian regime here and here.
