New death sentences and imprisonment for those convicted of the events on the Syrian coast

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On Thursday, the Syrian judiciary issued two death sentences against two loyalists to the former regime and sentenced another defendant, a member of the current Ministry of Defense, to twenty years in prison, convicting them of involvement in the bloody violence that took place on the Syrian coast last year.

As of March 6, 2025, the Sahel region, which has an Alawite majority, witnessed, over a period of three days, acts of violence with a sectarian background, which the authorities accused gunmen loyal to the ousted President Bashar al-Assad of igniting by launching attacks that killed dozens of its members.

In September, the judiciary issued a death sentence and another life sentence against two loyalists to the previous regime, and sentenced a member of the Ministry of Defense affiliated with the new authorities to twenty years in prison in the same case.

The trials, which began in November 2025, were completed on Thursday in the city of Aleppo in northern Syria, as the judiciary issued its rulings against three defendants loyal to the former regime and seven members of the Ministry of Defense.

The head of the Military Criminal Court, Zakaria Bakkar, announced that two defendants loyal to Assad were sentenced to death by hanging “for the felony of assault aimed at provoking civil war and sectarian fighting” and for “the felony of heading and assuming leadership of armed gangs.”

The third was sentenced to 12 years in prison “for the crime of interfering with the felony of assault aimed at provoking civil war and sectarian fighting (...) and for the crime of interfering by heading and assuming leadership of armed gangs.”

The judge sentenced another defendant, a member of the current Ministry of Defense, to 20 years in prison for “felony murder” with intent.

He issued a three-year prison sentence against another member for the crime of torture, and two others were sentenced to two years in prison in the same case.

The judiciary acquitted two members of the Ministry of Defense and sentenced a third to two months in prison for convicting him of a misdemeanor of causing harm.

An investigation committee appointed by the authorities announced in July 2025 that it had identified 298 people suspected of involvement in violence against the Alawite minority, noting that it had verified “serious violations” that had resulted in the killing of 1,426 Alawites whose names were documented.

According to the investigation committee, 238 members of public security and the army were also killed.