1 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Aug 11, 2026 03:08 PM IST

Syria’s former President Bashar al-Assad and his younger brother Maher were sentenced to death on Tuesday on charges of “crimes against humanity” and “war crimes” during Syria’s 14-year conflict that has left around half a million people dead, AP reported.

In the same case, Assad’s maternal cousin Atef Najib was also sentenced to death for leading the crackdown in the southern province of Daraa that led to the uprising and triggered the civil war. As a Syrian judge read the sentencing, Najib stood his ground inside a cage wearing a prisoner’s uniform.

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