Syria sentences former grand mufti to life in prison for war crimes

A court in Syria has sentenced Ahmed Hassoun, the country's former grand mufti, to life in prison. The 77-year-old cleric was convicted of crimes including inciting civil war and complicity in intentional killings during his tenure from 2005 to 2021.

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The court found that the official religious establishment, headed by the office of the mufti, had been used to provide religious cover for military and security operations and justify them publicly, including the use of barrel bombs against populated areas.

The Fourth Criminal Court in Damascus ruled that the official religious establishment led by Hassoun was used to "provide cover" for regime military and security operations throughout the 13-year civil war. State news agency Sana reported that these operations included the use of barrel bombs against civilian areas.

Hassoun, who denied all charges, maintained that he had tried to save people from the regime and that video clips used as evidence against him were taken out of context. He is the tenth figure from the Bashar al-Assad era to be sentenced by Syria's transitional authorities.

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The court found that the official religious establishment, headed by the office of the mufti, had been used to provide religious cover for military and security operations and justify them publicly, including the use of barrel bombs against populated areas.

Prosecutors accused Hassoun of inciting violence against civilians and supporting the regime through religious lectures and media statements. Evidence presented included an interview from 2015 where he told civilians to leave rebel-held Aleppo and stated that "every area from which a shell is fired should be completely destroyed." The court also found he received money and gifts for intervening in the release of detained civilians and financially supported a pro-regime militia.

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The court found that the official religious establishment, headed by the office of the mufti, had been used to provide religious cover for military and security operations and justify them publicly, including the use of barrel bombs against populated areas.

In addition to the life sentence for inciting civil war and sectarian strife, Hassoun received a 20-year sentence for incitement to intentional killing, a 10-year sentence for principal participation in intentional killing, and a three-year sentence for abuse of office. This sentencing follows similar convictions against other former senior regime figures, including Bashar al-Assad himself, who was sentenced to death in absentia for war crimes earlier this month.

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every area from which a shell is fired should be completely destroyed