Lelun Afrin
On Wednesday, 17th January 2024, the military court in Al-Rai city in the northern countryside of Aleppo, which is under the control of Syrian opposition factions, issued a death sentence against three members of the “Jaysh al-Sharqiya” faction of the Syrian National Army and acquitted another for killing four Kurdish citizens on the eve of Newroz night, 20th March 2023.
The families of the victims considered this decision unfair, because it acquitted the leader of the riot, “Abu Habib,” according to what they said, due to the lack of complete evidence. The family strongly denounced the decision, and “Yasmine Jaqal,” the wife of one of the victims and mother of a second victim, stated:
“Today, the court sentenced the perpetrators to death, even though there is no death sentence. It seems that they did this just to silence us and they acquitted, or as if they had acquitted – the big head – Abu Habib, due to the lack of sufficient evidence – according to their claim. Although, in light of fear and anxiety atmosphere, we brought four witnesses who confirmed that they had found Abu Habib at the crime scene. Some of them said that he saw him coming, some of them said that he opened fire and there was even another witness who confirmed that he saw Abu Habib patting his son on the shoulder encouraging him and firing the first bullet at the victims with his pistol.”
There were many attempts to pressure the Peshmerg family to accept a reconciliation with the perpetrators’ families. But in all attempts, they refused to give up their demands to hold the perpetrators accountable categorically. Perhaps the last attempt was by the Vice President of the Coalition, Dr. Abdel Hakim Bashar” during his visit to the family on 15th August 2023.
On Monday, 27th March 2023, Military Investigative Judge “Taha Rashwani”, accompanied by six members of the military police, came to Peshmerga family home in Jenderes town and conducted an investigation regarding the crime with the family members and the attempt of three members of the military police after the judicial control was duly closed, forcing the victims’ families to sign blank minutes papers. In this regard, Yasmin says:
“The main purpose of this whole operation was to exonerate Abu Habib, and they achieved their goal from the first day. In fact, we did not get our rights. Most of our witnesses were against Abu Habib. Instead of arresting those who supported Abu Habib, they acquitted him. Imposing the death penalty on three people does not mean that we have obtained our rights.”
“Ashraf Othman” – the brother of the victims in the Jenderes crime – emphasized the pressures that the family was exposed to abandon the case and accept reconciliation and bargaining, sometimes by threatening them, sometimes by luring them with money and at other times by obstructing the trial procedures and harassing them. In this regard, “Ashraf” stated, saying:
“Despite the pressure they put on us, we did not yield and we continued the case until the perpetrators were sentenced. We live in real danger, even though we demand nothing more than justice.”
Some believe that issuing a death sentence on members of the “Jaysh al-Sharqiya” faction, whose members come from the tribes of Deir Al-Zor, will make matters worse. As there is fear of an adverse reaction that may lead to more complexity and pressure on the “Peshmerg” family and perhaps to another crime or massacre. Especially in light of the lack of protection for the “Peshmerg” family members and no guarantees from any party, to the point that they were left without protection while heading to the court on the day of the ruling, they were accompanied by only one member of the military police and without a weapon. As “Ashraf Othman” stated in this regard, saying:
“We began to hear some threats and the danger to our lives increased after the court’s ruling was issued, even though it wasn’t what we had hoped for. We do not know what the fate of our families and children will become. The roads are blocked in front of us.”
For its part, the Syrian Interim Government admitted to committing the crime and supported the court’s decision as a practical application of the accountability approach and the government’s commitment to achieving justice, according to the statement it issued on 18th January 2023. The statement stated:
“At the conclusion of the efforts, the four main defendants were convicted of their charges, and a death sentence was issued against them as punishment for the heinous crime they committed.” The statement ignored the reduced sentence for the convict – Abu Habib, who is suspected of being involved in other violations, including beating of a woman in the middle of the street because she was demanding her home.
On 21st March 2023, the Liberation and Construction Movement announced the arrest of three accused committing the murder crime against the four Kurdish civilians in Jenderes city and handed them over to the military police command. They are:
- Omar Saleh Al-Asmar, born in 2000, from the Deir Al-Zor countryside
- Habib Ali Khalaf, born in 2004, from the Deir Al-Zor countryside
- Bilal Ahmed Al-Aboud, born in 2000, from the Deir Al-Zor countryside
According to judicial sources, the courts affiliated with the Syrian National Army rely on previously applied Syrian law to prosecute such crimes. But the death sentences issued by those courts are “unexecutable” because there is no higher authority authorized to sign the court’s decision and implement the sentences as was previously practiced in Syria.
The crime occurred on the eve of Newroz, on the evening of Monday, 20th March 2023, and four Kurdish civilians from the “Peshmerg” family were killed in front of their home in Jenderes city while they were lighting the torch of Newroz – the national day of the Kurds. They are: “Nazmi Othman, Farah Al-Din Othman, Muhammad Farah al-Din Othman, Muhammad Othman” by a group of members of the “Jaysh al-Sharqiya” faction of the Syrian National Army.