Dutch court sentences Syrian ex-militia member to 26 years for torture
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – A Dutch court on Monday sentenced a former Syrian pro-government militia member to 26 years in prison for crimes against humanity, including torture and sexual violence committed during the early years of the Syrian conflict.
The District Court of The Hague found 58-year-old Rafik A., a former interrogator with the National Defense Forces (NDF), guilty of abusing detainees in the city of Salamiyah in Hama Governorate between 2013 and 2014. His full identity was withheld under Dutch privacy rules.
The ruling follows prosecutors’ earlier demand for a 30-year sentence in a landmark case involving alleged atrocity crimes by pro-government forces in Syria.
The court said Rafik A. was responsible for torture, rape and other forms of sexual abuse against multiple victims, either directly or by ordering subordinates to carry out the acts.
“The suspect was engaged in torture, rape or other sexual abuse of eight victims in this case,” presiding judge Wim van Hattum said in a summary of the verdict.
Rafik A. denied all charges during the trial, describing the accusations as a “conspiracy” and insisting he had worked as a civil servant rather than a militia interrogator.
The case is the first in the Netherlands to address sexual violence as a crime against humanity, and the first Dutch trial targeting alleged atrocities committed by pro-government Syrian forces.
The proceedings were conducted under the principle of universal jurisdiction, which allows national courts to prosecute serious international crimes committed abroad when suspects or victims are present on their territory.
Rafik A. was arrested in the Netherlands in 2023 after arriving in the country as an asylum seeker in 2021, and had been living in the town of Druten prior to his detention.
Dutch prosecutors had previously described the case as a landmark prosecution, charging him with 25 counts of crimes against humanity involving nine victims.
The verdict comes amid broader European efforts to prosecute suspected war crimes and crimes against humanity linked to the Syrian conflict. Similar cases have been heard in Germany and other European jurisdictions.
Courts in the Netherlands have previously sentenced Syrian suspects in connection with torture and unlawful detention, including a 12-year prison term issued in 2024.