Dutch prosecutors seek 30-year sentence for alleged Syrian torturer

THE HAGUE, April 22 (Reuters) – Prosecutors in the Netherlands on Wednesday demanded a 30-year prison sentence for a Syrian man accused of torturing and raping prisoners when he was ​a member of a militia that backed the government of ‌former president Bashar al-Assad.

Prosecutors have charged 58-year-old Rafik A., whose last name is withheld by the Dutch court, with 25 counts including torture, sexual violence and rape as crimes against humanity against nine people in 2013 and 2014.

Rafik A. ‌has ​repeatedly denied any involvement with the alleged ⁠crimes. The case is the ⁠first in the Netherlands to deal with alleged atrocity crimes in Syria committed by pro-government forces. It is also the first time Dutch prosecutors have charged sexual violence as a crime against ​humanity.

Cases against Assad-era security officials have also been brought in other European countries, including Germany.

Witnesses who survived the defendant’s attacks spoke ⁠of the physical and psychological torture inflicted ⁠by A. during the trial.

“Not only did he tear my body ​apart, but he trampled on my soul. He was the worst nightmare of my ​life,” one witness said, recounting that he entered detention as a ‌child and emerged as a traumatised adult.

Prosecutors say Rafik A. was the head of the interrogation unit of the National Defence Forces (NDF) in Salamiyah, Syria, in 2013 and 2014. The NDF was a ⁠militia that fought on the side of the government of Assad, who was ousted in December 2024.

Rafik A. was arrested in 2023 in the ⁠Netherlands, where he had ‌lived for several years as an asylum seeker.

Under ⁠the concept of universal jurisdiction, Dutch law broadly ​allows ‌cases to be brought against foreign nationals for ​crimes committed abroad ⁠if the perpetrators or some of the victims are present in the Netherlands.

Rafik A.’s lawyers and lawyers for his alleged victims will give their closing arguments on Thursday. The verdict is expected on June 9.

(Reporting by Stephanie van den Berg; additional reporting by Suban Abdulla; Editing ​by Aidan Lewis)