Trial of Syrian man accused of torture during Syria’s civil war begins in the Netherlands

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) - A Syrian man accused of crimes against humanity denied dozens of charges of torture and sexual violence in the opening of his trial in the Netherlands on Wednesday.

The 58-year-old, identified only as Rafiq al Q. due to Dutch privacy regulations, claimed he was being conspired against and refuted accusations of being a supporter of former Syrian Presdient Bashar Assad. Prosecutors at the District Court of The Hague said he was a member of the pro-Assad National Defence Force and worked as the lead interrogator for the paramilitary group during Syria's civil war.

The defendant accused the nine victims in the case, the witnesses and the Dutch police of lying. "All of them are conspiring against me," he said, speaking through an interpreter.

He told judges that he had worked as a civil servant in the central city of Salamiyah and denied involvement in torture.

During one exchange, the man attempted to submit evidence, waving a piece of paper at the presiding judge. His lawyer, André Seebregts, said it wasn't clear what the evidence was, to which the defendant replied: "I don't tell my lawyer everything."

The trial is based on universal jurisdiction, a legal principle that allows suspects to be prosecuted for international offenses such as war crimes even if they are committed in another country.

The defendant claimed asylum in the Netherlands in 2021 and lived in the small town of Druten in the eastern part of the country when he was arrested in 2023.

The Netherlands has prosecuted several Syrians for war crimes and crimes against humanity during the Syrian conflict. In 2024, a Dutch court convicted a former high-ranking member of a pro-Syrian government militia of illegal detention and complicity in torture. Another Syrian man was convicted in 2021 of war crimes for his role in the summary execution of a prisoner.

Syria's conflict started with peaceful protests against Assad's government in March 2011, but quickly morphed into a full-blown civil war, lasting nearly 14 years, after the government's brutal crackdown on protesters.

In 2024, insurgents led by now-interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa's Hayat Tahrir al-Sham marched to Damascus and removed Assad from power. Since then, al-Sharaa, a former leader of al-Qaida's branch in Syria, has improved relations with Western countries and last year became the first Syrian head of state to visit Washington since Syria's independence in 1946.

The Netherlands and Canada have brought a separate case against Syria at the United Nations' top court, accusing Damascus of a yearslong campaign of torturing its own citizens. In 2023, the International Court of Justice ordered the government to "take all measures within its powers" to prevent torture.

Hearings will continue for another two weeks and the court is expected to issue a verdict on June 9th.