In an exclusive interview conducted by our agency with Professor of International Law Khaled Jabr, he stated that the recent trials held in Syria involving individuals accused of committing violations in the Syrian coast are \u201csham trials\u201d that did not rise to the level of justice required under international law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jabr explained that the trials targeted individuals who, according to him, had been operating under the direct responsibility of the Ministry of Defense, describing what took place as a \u201ctheatrical farce\u201d lacking the minimum standards of justice, despite the presence of \u201cconclusive evidence\u201d proving that violations did occur in the Syrian coast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The legal expert questioned the absence of prosecution mechanisms and the lack of representation or presence of victims\u2019 families during the court sessions, saying that the procedures followed were \u201cfar removed from reality and legal logic,\u201d and that the investigation sessions were not based on any recognized legal methodology but were conducted \u201cunder political directives,\u201d as he put it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jabr pointed out that, according to international humanitarian law, the Geneva Conventions, and their additional protocols, the acts committed against civilians in the coastal region and in Sweida amount to \u201cwar crimes and killings on the basis of identity,\u201d citing reports issued by international human rights organizations that held officials within the Ministry of Defense responsible for the violations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He added that the trials were held \u201cwithout the oversight of the victims,\u201d and that they reproduced the same approach that had been followed before December 2024, considering that the absence of genuine accountability represents a \u201cserious deterioration\u201d in the human rights situation in Syria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He noted that the violations documented by international investigative committees in the coastal region and Sweida require, according to the principles of international law, the establishment of an independent judicial mechanism or a special international tribunal to ensure that perpetrators do not escape punishment, stressing the need for United Nations oversight over any future judicial process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jabr concluded by saying that \u201ctransitional justice in Syria remains absent,\u201d and that achieving it requires holding accountable all those involved in the violations, and restoring justice to the victims who \u201ccontinue to suffer from the consequences of massacres, identity-based killings, and demographic changes\u201d that have affected various areas of the count<\/p>\n\n\n\n