According to Syria's state news agency Sana, the arrest warrant contains allegations of, among other things, murder, torture with fatal outcome and deprivation of liberty. The allegations are based on lawsuits filed by the victims' families after events that occurred in the province of Deraa in southern Syria in November 2011.
Assad and his family fled to Russia in December after rebel groups overthrew his government. This happened after 13 years of civil war in the country with foreign powers also involved, including Russia, Iran, the USA and Turkey.
The former president has been accused of using chemical weapons against civilians and of widespread torture during the war in Syria. More than 600,000 people had been killed in the country's civil war by March 2024, according to the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).
