Ex-Syrian colonel appears in UK court on charges of crimes against humanity | UK news
A former Syrian colonel has appeared in a London court to face charges of crimes against humanity in the first such case in England and Wales.
Salem Al-Salem is accused of murder and torture allegedly committed during the Syrian government’s violent crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrations in Damascus in 2011.
Al Salem, who fled to England, is alleged to have played a leading role in the violence at the beginning of the uprising against Bashar Assad, which resulted in civil war and the overthrow of the Assad regime in 2024.
The 58-year-old man faces three counts of murder, three counts of torture and one count of accessory to murder as crimes against humanity.
The crimes are alleged to have been committed while Al-Salem was serving as a colonel in the Syrian air force intelligence agency and led a group that tried to suppress demonstrations in the village of Jobar on the outskirts of Damascus.
Al-Salem appeared at Westminster magistrates’ court via video link on Tuesday with a breathing tube in his mouth. The court was told that he suffered from motor neurone disease and was confined to his home.
Chief magistrate Paul Goldspring accepted he did not need to give his name due to his medical condition but rejected his lawyer’s request to state restrictions to protect his identity.
“Naming the defendant does not increase the risk,” he said.
This case marks the first time the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has brought the charge of murder as a crime against humanity under the International Criminal Court Act 2001. A UK court found Afghan warlord Faryadi Sarwar Zardad guilty of a “disgusting” campaign of torture and hostage-taking in 2005.
The charges against Al-Salem relate to the murders of Omal Al-Homsi, Nizar Fayoumi-AlKhatib, Mohammed Salim Zahrak Balik and Talhat Dalal in April and July 2011. Dalal was allegedly responsible for killing three of the victims as part of a “widespread or systematic attack” on civilians. He also faces charges of torture against three people between August 2011 and March 2012.
Al-Salem, who was under a 24-hour curfew, was arrested in Buckinghamshire in 2021 and released on bail pending further investigation. Announcing the charges on Monday, the Counter Terrorism Police (CTP) said the investigation was complex.
CTP’s London commander, Helen Flanagan, said: “The charges are extremely serious and show that we fully support the UK’s ‘no safe haven’ policy on alleged war crimes.”
“When we are presented with allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity that fall within our jurisdiction, we will not hesitate to investigate them rigorously and robustly, as we have shown here.”
The case will continue with a hearing at the Old Bailey on Friday.
