Bashar al-Assad, Atef Najib sentenced to death in landmark Syria trial

Syria’s ex-president Bashar al-Assad and Atef Najib, the former head of political security in southern Syria’s Deraa province, have been sentenced to death after being convicted of crimes during the country’s civil war.

The Criminal Court in Damascus on Tuesday found Assad guilty of premeditated murder, while Najib was convicted of premeditated murder and torture.

The court found that crimes committed by Assad’s government in Deraa province in 2011 amounted to crimes against humanity.