British prosecutors charged a UK-resident with crimes against humanity allegedly committed in Syria, linked to his role putting down demonstrations in April 2011, police said on Monday.
The London-based Counter Terrorism Policing said it was the "first prosecution of its kind in the UK".
"The 58-year-old man, who now lives in the UK, has been charged in relation to his time working in the Syrian Air Force Intelligence (AFI) in Damascus," the CTP said.
The man, who has not been named, is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London on Tuesday.
He was charged with three counts of murder as a crime against humanity, three counts of torture, and one offence of conduct ancillary to murder as a crime against humanity.
"The charges relate to demonstrations which took place in the suburbs of Damascus, Syria, from April 2011," police said, adding he allegedly led a group tasked with stopping protests in Jobar, an eastern suburb of the capital.
The Syrian civil war broke out in March 2011 when large anti?government protests erupted across the country inspired in part by the regional Arab Spring.
Then president Bashar al-Assad cracked down hard on the demonstrations.
Assad, whose family had ruled Syria with an iron fist for some five decades, finally fled for Russia in December 2024 after an Islamist-led offensive wrested city after city from his control until Damascus fell.
"This has been an incredibly complex and challenging investigation, involving enquiries across many countries," CTP London head Helen Flanagan said.
"The charges are extremely serious and show that we fully support the UK's 'no safe haven' policy in relation alleged war criminals."
