Ici Beyrouth - Bashar al-Assad

Can Bashar al-Assad Be Judged for His Crimes?

Natasha Metni Torbey, 20/12 11:41 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

International Criminal Court UN Security Council Vladimir Putin Bashar al-Assad

War crimes, crimes against humanity, the use of chemical weapons against civilians… The accusations directed at former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad raise pressing questions, particularly following the fall of his regime on December 8: can he be brought to justice? If so, through what legal mechanisms? And what about the status he enjoys in ...

Syria's New Rulers Step Up Engagement With The World

This is Beirut, 17/12 19:00 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Syria Bashar al-Assad Hayat Tahrir al-Sham

Syria's new rulers stepped up engagement on Tuesday with countries that deemed ousted president Bashar al-Assad a pariah, with the French flag raised at the embassy for the first time in over a decade. Assad fled Syria just over a week ago, as his forces abandoned tanks and other equipment in the face of a lightning offensive spearheaded by the ...

Syrian Soldiers Hand in Weapons, Hope for Quiet Lives

This is Beirut, 16/12 19:35 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Syria Bashar al-Assad Syrian army

When Syria's new government put out a call on social media for soldiers and police to lay down their arms and register with the authorities, Kamal Merhej was happy to oblige. "I don't like the army, I want to get back on track with my life without anyone to give me orders," the 28-year-old told AFP. He spent nine years in the army, posted to the ...

Flash Villas, Cars and Drugs: Assad's Legacy in Latakia

This is Beirut, 16/12 17:55 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Syria Bashar al-Assad

The drive winds between manicured lavender-lined lawns to a crescent-shaped home with a gleaming swimming pool on the Syrian coast: Bashar al-Assad's holiday hideaway disgusts those who now come here. "To think that he spent all that money and we lived in misery," spat Mudar Ghanem, 26. He is grey-skinned and his eyes are sunken after spending ...

Assad Denies 'Planned' Exit From Syria, Calls New Leaders 'Terrorists'

This is Beirut, 16/12 16:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Syria Bashar al-Assad Russia

In his first remarks since he was deposed, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Monday said he fled Syria only after Damascus had fallen and denounced the country's new leaders as "terrorists". An Islamist-led rebel alliance launched a lightning offensive from its northwest Syria bastion on November 27, swiftly capturing major cities from ...

Navigating the Uncertainties of the Post-Assad Era

Michel Touma, 16/12 11:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Israel Middle East Benjamin Netanyahu Syria Bashar al-Assad

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had anticipated it well before Bashar al-Assad's downfall, pointing to the emergence of a new Middle East. Likewise, President-elect Donald Trump had set the tone during his campaign, emphasizing his commitment to forging peace in a region beset by over seven decades of armed conflict and largely ...

Syria: From Euphoria to Growing Concern

Elie Ziadé, 15/12 15:30 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

Turkey HTS Bashar al-Assad Syria

The fall of Bashar al-Assad took everyone by surprise, almost no one saw it coming. Yet, it was met with joy. Scenes of celebration across Syria, as well as in countries hosting millions of Syrian nationals and refugees, along with the shared joy of other populations — notably in Lebanon — reflect the harsh rule that the Assad dynasty had ...

Syrian Rebels Took a Year to Plan Assad's Ouster

This is Beirut, 13/12 21:40 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Damascus syria HTS Bashar al-Assad

Syria's Islamist-led rebel alliance had been planning the surprise ouster of President Basher al-Assad for a year, an opposition military leader told the Guardian in an interview published Friday. The Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) Islamist group, which says it has moved away from its roots in Al-Qaeda, has long-controlled a part of northwest ...

Lebanese Agriculture Lacks a Gateway

Liliane Mokbel, 13/12 20:07 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Syria Lebanon Bashar al-Assad

Lebanese farmers continue to endure substantial losses. Since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime on December 8, the movement of refrigerated and covered trucks between Lebanon and the Arab hinterland has become increasingly irregular. All Lebanese exports and imports sent overland to and from the Arab world are reliant on transit through ...

Loyal no more: Syrians Turn from Once-Omnipotent Baath Party

This is Beirut, 12/12 19:55 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Damascus HTS Baath Syria Bashar al-Assad

Maher Semsmieh turned in his rifle on Thursday at an office of Syria's Baath party, more than 60 years after its oppressive rule in Syria began, and days after it ended. "We are no longer Baathists," Semsmieh, 43, said with a smile of relief, four days after Islamist-led rebels toppled the Baathist government of president Bashar al-Assad. "We ...

The Atrocities Committed by the Assad Regime

Assaad Bechara , 11/12 16:20 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Syria Saydnaya prison torture Bashar al-Assad

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime embodies the worst a tyrannical regime can inflict on its people. The only hope for Syrians lies in achieving justice and holding those responsible accountable to ensure that such tragedies are not repeated in the future, and to organize a peaceful power transition to close this long, dark chapter in ...

What Unbearable Fate and Injustice Is This?

Johnny Kortbawi, 10/12 12:45 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Syria Bashar al-Assad Prisoners Saadnaya

Bashar al-Assad has fled—escaped after securing his safety and future, carving out a quiet life in Russia—the country that has shielded him, defended him, and propped up his regime for more than 14 years. Following his disgraceful flight, prisoners emerged from the decay and injustice of his dungeons, standing tall and victorious, finally ...

Bashar al-Assad