Shortly after 10 a.m. on November 18, 2025, the Aleppo courthouse opened its doors under heavy military police surveillance. Courtroom number 3, narrow and crowded, was full of journalists, families, and observers. The atmosphere was heavy: for the first time in Syria’s contemporary history, a criminal trial was being held in public, nearly a year after the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad.
The 14 defendants who are all prisoners, some dressed in black tracksuits with wrists bound, were seated in a metal cage. “The court is sovereign and independent,” declared presiding judge Zakaria Bakkar, who is assisted by two assessors. The judge reminded everyone of the rules of procedure set out in the Syrian Penal Code of 1949, amended in 2011, and the Syrian Military Penal Code of 1950. The tone was solemn.
Aleppo public prosecutor Ghiath Abdullah appeared, an imposing man dressed in a black robe trimmed with red satin. He then sat down, with the new Syrian flag hanging behind him.
Prosecutions relate to Syrian coast violence
The facts under examination concern violence that took place from March 7 to 9, 2025, in the coastal cities of Tartus, Hama, and Latakia, a region predominantly populated by people of the Alawite minority from which the Assad clan hails. These abuses followed attacks on positions of the interim government’s security forces by former officers loyal to the fallen regime. Ensuing clashes resulted in the killing of civilians, looting, and destruction of property.
An independent national commission, appointed on March 9 by transitional president Ahmed al-Charaa, identified 1,426 people killed, most of them civilians, as well as 238 members of the security forces. Its findings, announced in a press release on July 22, 2025, are consistent with those of the UN-mandated Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria, which documented serious violations of international humanitarian law and called for effective legal proceedings.
The Syrian and foreign press were invited to attend the trial hearings and allowed to film them, a first in Syria. Justice Info was able to attend this first hearing. Through this trial, the transitional government is putting its credibility on the line, both with the Syrian population and the international community.
Fourteen defendants, two opposing sides
The first seven defendants, former affiliates of Bashar al-Assad’s regime, are being prosecuted for sedition, violence, and looting. They stood up in their black iron cage. With voices rising barely above a whisper, they all pleaded not-guilty and claimed to have confessed under duress, some mentioning torture.
Mahir N., Maher A., and Waddah I., three young men from Jableh, were charged after law enforcement officers found a video on their cell phones at the time of their arrest showing them calling for insurrection. “I made this video for personal gain,” Mahir N., 20, told the court. He said he was encouraged to do so in exchange for money by a person nicknamed Abu Hassan, whose identity remains unknown. He denied any involvement in the attacks.
The presiding judge reassured the defendants they could speak freely and safely during this hearing. He invited the first seven defendants to present witnesses at the next hearing, scheduled for December 18. At this first hearing, most of the defendants did not have court-appointed lawyers.
The second group, composed of seven members of the new Syrian authorities’ security forces, unbound and with their heads held high, entered the courtroom. They are being prosecuted for premeditated murder, looting, arson of private property, and membership in illegal armed groups. Murmurs of surprise rippled through the courtroom. On social media, rumours had circulated that only individuals affiliated with the former regime would be tried.
Security forces called for order in the courtroom. Before questioning the defendants, the judge started reading out their family names, first names, places of residence and official positions. His tone seemed kinder than that reserved for the former regime members.
Each defendant denied the charges. The soldiers spoke from the same cage without trembling. Uniformed soldiers sat beside them as a sign of support. Mohammed Z., a fighter in Division 400, claimed that the bodies of Alawite victims shown in a video were those of pro-Assad attackers already killed in combat, adding: “I was overexcited by our victory.” Bassel H., a 30-year-old soldier, disputed another video showing him killing a civilian, saying it was done by artificial intelligence.
The videos were viewed by the court before the trial began and were not shown during the hearing.
A readjusted second public hearing
“Each group is being prosecuted for separate crimes. Trying them together has no solid legal basis,” says Almoutassim Al Kilani, a lawyer specializing in international criminal law and human rights who is founder of the NGO My Rights. “The argument is as follows. If only the seven members of the former regime are tried, the international community and Europe will talk about revenge justice. If only members of the government are tried, people will say that the state is judging its own agents instead of judging Assad or the former leaders.
“You can’t judge one side and spare the other,” he adds. “Without justice on the coast, there will be no peace on the coast.”
At the second hearing on December 18, only the seven affiliated with the former regime appeared. Broadcast on YouTube, Justice Info followed it remotely from Paris.
The court gave them more time to defend themselves, present their versions of events and submit evidence, assisted by court-appointed lawyers paid by the state. The prosecutor requested that digital evidence, mainly videos, be shown at another hearing and that witnesses for the defence and prosecution be summoned.
The seven were called to the stand, unshackled this time. As they left the cage, they all tried to catch the eye of their families in the courtroom. With microphones attached to their jackets, their words were more audible. Alawite victims were present in the courtroom.
Wearing a black leather jacket with a red hood, Mahir N. was questioned about his confession. He said he appeared in a video under duress. “I was tortured by General Security during the interrogation, and sectarian insults were hurled at me,” he told the court.
“The second hearing showed a willingness to correct procedural errors made during the first,” says Al Kilani, who travelled to Aleppo to attend.
565 people targeted for prosecution
Several Syrian organizations have collected evidence of the March 2025 massacres, but their role in this trial remains limited. The proceedings involve only the prosecution, judges, and lawyers. Although Syrian law theoretically allows for the admission of civil parties, this has not happened.
“Associations can submit information and evidence to the judges, but they do not participate in the hearings. They do not plead, cross-examine or participate in the proceedings,” Al Kilani explains.
According to the Syrian National Commission of Inquiry, more than 500 identified individuals were involved in the March violence. In total, the Attorney General has brought charges against 265 pro-Assad loyalists and nearly 300 members of factions affiliated with the current regime. Two courts are involved: the Aleppo Military Criminal Court, and the Damascus Criminal Court.
Al Kilani believes this trial is a major test for post-Assad Syria. He says there has been “confusion between judicial publicity and spectacular staging” and that “many shortcomings have been observed with regard to procedures, protection of victims, the role of witnesses and in publicity around the investigations”. But, he continues: “This is the first judicial experiment of its kind in Syria, a country that has been bled dry. Despite the mistakes, this experiment can serve as a basis if corrections are made.”
