Syrian court sentences three linked to coastal violence

According to Al Jazeera – Breaking News, World News and Video from Al Jazeera, a military criminal court in Aleppo has delivered initial rulings regarding mass killings that took place in coastal Syria last year. The proceedings resulted in a death sentence and a life prison term for two individuals who supported the former government, while a former member of the security forces was handed a 20-year sentence. A fourth defendant was cleared of all charges in this first round of verdicts, which follows a legal process initiated last November against 14 suspects.

The violence, which occurred last March, claimed the lives of hundreds of individuals from the Alawite minority community. These killings were sparked by clashes between armed groups loyal to former President Bashar al-Assad and new government security forces, eventually escalating into widespread attacks against civilians. While the National Commission of Inquiry characterized the resulting atrocities as individual, indiscriminate acts, a United Nations investigation described the violence as systematic, reporting that victims were often targeted based on their sectarian identity.

The National Commission of Inquiry previously verified the deaths of at least 1,426 people, the majority of whom were civilians, and identified nearly 300 suspects. The commission also noted significant casualties among security and army personnel during the conflict, leading the authorities to deploy roughly 200,000 reinforcements to the area. Further judicial decisions related to the remaining accused individuals are anticipated to be announced next week.

Source: Al Jazeera – Breaking News, World News and Video from Al Jazeera — https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/9/17/syrian-court-sentences-three-linked-to-coastal-violence?traffic_source=rss