The Dutch prosecutor’s office has sought a 30-year prison sentence for a Syrian man accused of torturing and raping prisoners while he was a member of a paramilitary group that supported the government of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Rafik A., 58 (his last name was not released by the court), is charged with 25 counts, including torture, sexual violence and rape – crimes against humanity – against nine people in 2013 and 2014. He categorically denies any involvement in the case.
It is the first time a Dutch court has examined crimes committed in Syria by pro-government forces. It is also the first time prosecutors have classified sexual violence as a crime against humanity.
Assad’s security officials have also been put on trial in other European countries, including Germany.
Witnesses who survived Rafik A.’s attacks have recounted the physical and psychological torture they were subjected to. “He not only crushed my body, he also trampled on my soul. It was the worst nightmare of my life,” said one of those who “entered prison as a child and came out as a wounded adult.”
According to prosecutors, Rafik A. was the head of the National Defense Forces (NDF) interrogation team in Salamiyah, Syria, between 2013 and 2014. The NDF was a paramilitary group that fought alongside the Assad government.
The 58-year-old was arrested in 2023 in the Netherlands, where he had lived for several years as an asylum seeker.
Dutch law allows foreigners to be tried for crimes committed in other countries, provided that the perpetrators or one of their victims lives in the Netherlands.
Rafik A.’s lawyers and the victims’ lawyers are scheduled to give their closing arguments tomorrow. The verdict will be announced on June 9.
© BalkansWeb