Abuses attributed to the Syrian regime become clearer at the Koblenz trial
One of the two former Syrian officers tried in Koblenz.
Here, April 23, 2020. Thomas Frey / dpa via AP
Text by: RFI Follow
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The first trial of abuses attributed to the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad opened in the spring in Koblenz, Germany.
For two days, lawyer and human rights defender Mazen Darwish, who himself knew Syrian prisons, delivered new elements.
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An unprecedented trial has been taking place since last April at the Koblenz court.
Two former Syrian officers arrested on German soil after leaving their country are tried there in the name of "universal jurisdiction".
They are accused of crimes against humanity for murders and acts of torture.
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To read also: Opening of the first trial in the world on the abuses committed by the Assad regime
In court, lawyer and human rights defender Mazen Darwish delivered documents obtained, he said, thanks to leaks within the Syrian security system.
“
We communicated to the court the coordinates of four mass graves in the suburbs of Damascus.
There is also a report that mentions people who died while in Division 251, with information on the number of bodies and on the cold rooms in which they were stored,
”he told RFI. .
Division 251 is a branch of Syrian intelligence.
According to testimonies, many opponents were detained there and sometimes tortured to death.
Before German justice, Mazen Darwish also spoke about its operation.
“
Among this evidence is the organizational chart and chain of command of Division 251 with the names of 93 officers and employees.
"
The two Syrian defendants tried since April in Koblenz were stationed in this division.
According to Mazen Darwish, the responsibility for the abuses committed there dates back to the top of the Syrian state.
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