Who Is Bashar al-Assad? — From Syria’s Presidency To A Death Sentence In Absentia

A Syrian court on Tuesday sentenced ousted Syrian President Bashar Assad and his younger brother Maher Assad to death in absentia for crimes against humanity and war crimes during Syria’s 14-year conflict, which left about half a million people dead.

Also sentenced to death was Assad’s maternal cousin Atef Najib, who led the crackdown in the southern province of Daraa in 2011. The crackdown led to the uprising and later the civil war.

Amid tight security, Najib stood inside a cage wearing a prisoner’s uniform as the judge read the sentence. According to AP, he was later detained and became one of the highest-ranking officials to be put on trial.

AP reported that Najib was a former Syrian army brigadier general who was head of the Political Security Branch in southern Syria’s Daraa province under Assad in 2011.

Assad and Maher fled to Russiaafter insurgents marched into Damascus in December 2014.

Who is Bashar al-Assad?

Bashar al-Assad, a member of Syria’s Alawite minority—a sect that has long held significant political power- assumed the presidency in 2000 after the death of his father, Hafez al-Assad, who had ruled since 1971.

Bashar's rise came through an unopposed election, continuing the authoritarian legacy of his father, a Soviet-aligned leader who elevated Alawites to influential roles in Syria's political and military institutions.

Following the 2011 pro-democracy protests, Assad's regime launched a brutal crackdown that escalated into a full-scale civil war. His forces became known for harsh tactics against opposition groups, many of which were made up of grassroots militias and military defectors.

In 2013, UN inspectors confirmed “overwhelming and indisputable” evidence of nerve gas use in Syria, specifically in an August 21 attack on Damascus suburbs. Then-UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned it as “the worst use of weapons of mass destruction in the 21st century.”

Assad took power in an unopposed election in 2000 following the death of his father Hafez al-Assad, who rose from poverty to lead the Baath Party and seized power in 1970, becoming the country’s president the following year. The younger Assad grew up in the shadow of his father, a Soviet ally who ruled Syria for three decades and helped propel a minority Alawite population to key political, social and military posts.

Bashar al-Assad, a member of Syria’s Alawite minority—a sect that has long held significant political power- assumed the presidency in 2000 after the death of his father, Hafez al-Assad, who had ruled since 1971.

Bashar's rise came through an unopposed election, continuing the authoritarian legacy of his father, a Soviet-aligned leader who elevated Alawites to influential roles in Syria's political and military institutions.

Following the 2011 pro-democracy protests, Assad's regime launched a brutal crackdown that escalated into a full-scale civil war. His forces became known for harsh tactics against opposition groups, many of which were made up of grassroots militias and military defectors.

In 2013, UN inspectors confirmed “overwhelming and indisputable” evidence of nerve gas use in Syria, specifically in an August 21 attack on Damascus suburbs. Then-UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned it as “the worst use of weapons of mass destruction in the 21st century.”

Assad took power in an unopposed election in 2000 following the death of his father Hafez al-Assad, who rose from poverty to lead the Baath Party and seized power in 1970, becoming the country’s president the following year. The younger Assad grew up in the shadow of his father, a Soviet ally who ruled Syria for three decades and helped propel a minority Alawite population to key political, social and military posts.