French Court Upholds Warrant for Syria’s Assad over Chemical Weapons

Syrian activist and member of the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom Expression (SCM) Mazen Darwish (C) flanked by his lawyers speaks to members of the media after the Paris Court of Appeal's decision to confirm that a head of state, and in this case, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, can be prosecuted for crimes, in Paris, France, 26 June 2024. (EPA)
Syrian activist and member of the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom Expression (SCM) Mazen Darwish (C) flanked by his lawyers speaks to members of the media after the Paris Court of Appeal's decision to confirm that a head of state, and in this case, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, can be prosecuted for crimes, in Paris, France, 26 June 2024. (EPA)
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French Court Upholds Warrant for Syria’s Assad over Chemical Weapons

Syrian activist and member of the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom Expression (SCM) Mazen Darwish (C) flanked by his lawyers speaks to members of the media after the Paris Court of Appeal's decision to confirm that a head of state, and in this case, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, can be prosecuted for crimes, in Paris, France, 26 June 2024. (EPA)
Syrian activist and member of the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom Expression (SCM) Mazen Darwish (C) flanked by his lawyers speaks to members of the media after the Paris Court of Appeal's decision to confirm that a head of state, and in this case, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, can be prosecuted for crimes, in Paris, France, 26 June 2024. (EPA)

An arrest warrant issued for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad over the use of banned chemical weapons against civilians was upheld by a Paris court on Wednesday, one of the lawyers who lodged the initial case said.

The warrant issued by French judges in November 2023 refers to charges of complicity in crimes against humanity and complicity in war crimes, followed a French investigation into chemical attacks in Douma and the district of Eastern Ghouta in August 2013, attacks which killed more than 1,000 people.

Prosecutors, who would be responsible for asking the police to enact the warrant, had challenged its validity, arguing that, as a sitting head of state, Assad was immune from trial and prosecution in France.

"Today is a very special day and this is a historic victory, not only for the Syrian victims, but for all the victims around the world," said Mazen Darwish, head of the Syrian Center for Media & Freedom of the Press.

"The court’s decision confirms what we have always said – that when the issue concerns crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the use of chemical weapons, immunity should never be relied upon."

Assad's government has denied using chemical weapons against its opponents in the civil war, which broke out in March 2011. Syrian authorities did not immediately reply to a request for comment on Wednesday's Court of Appeal ruling.

Arrest warrants for sitting heads of state are rare because they generally have immunity from prosecution.

However, international law has exceptions to that immunity when a head of state is accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity or genocide. France is among the countries that allows the filing of crimes against humanity cases in its courts.

"This decision makes clear that international rules on immunity cannot be synonymous with impunity, particularly for the most serious international crimes," Steve Kostas, senior legal officer at Open Society Justice initiative, said in reaction to the verdict.



Almost Half of Attacks on Heath Care in Lebanon Have Been Deadly, WHO Says

Smoke rises as a result of an Israeli airstrike on the village of Al-Khiyam in southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, northern Israel, 22 November 2024, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. (EPA)
Smoke rises as a result of an Israeli airstrike on the village of Al-Khiyam in southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, northern Israel, 22 November 2024, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. (EPA)
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Almost Half of Attacks on Heath Care in Lebanon Have Been Deadly, WHO Says

Smoke rises as a result of an Israeli airstrike on the village of Al-Khiyam in southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, northern Israel, 22 November 2024, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. (EPA)
Smoke rises as a result of an Israeli airstrike on the village of Al-Khiyam in southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, northern Israel, 22 November 2024, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. (EPA)

The World Health Organization says nearly half of the attacks on health care in Lebanon have been deadly since the Middle East conflict erupted in October last year, the highest such rate anywhere in the world.

The UN health agency says 65 out of 137, or 47%, of recorded “attacks on health care” in Lebanon over that time period have proven fatal to at least one person, and often many more.

WHO’s running global tally counts attacks, whether deliberate or not, that affect places like hospitals, clinics, medical transport, and warehouses for medical supplies, as well as medics, doctors, nurses and the patients they treat.

Nearly half of attacks on health care in Lebanon since last October and the majority of deaths occurred since an intensified Israeli military campaign began against Hezbollah in the country two months ago.

The health agency said 226 health workers and patients have been killed and 199 injured in Lebanon between Oct. 7, 2023 and this Monday.