PARIS (Reuters) -French investigating judges have issued arrest warrants for seven former high Syrian officers, together with ex-President Bashar al-Assad, for the bombing of a press centre in Homs in 2012, a judicial supply and a human rights organisation mentioned on Tuesday.
Homs, in western Syria, was a significant insurgent stronghold throughout the Syrian civil struggle and was besieged by Assad authorities forces from 2011 to 2014. The siege ended with anti-Assad rebels withdrawing from town.
A rocket hit the “casual press centre” on February 22, 2012, killing famend American journalist Marie Colvin and French photographer Remi Ochlik and injuring two different journalists and an interpreter.
The Worldwide Federation for Human Rights mentioned the seven former officers had been accused of complicity in struggle crimes and crimes in opposition to humanity for the assault on the centre.
France permits the submitting of crimes in opposition to humanity instances in its courts. The judicial supply mentioned the seven European arrest warrants had been issued final month.
One other human rights organisation, the Syrian Centre for Media and Free Expression, mentioned the French judicial investigation had discovered that the assault had intentionally focused international journalists.
“The judicial investigation clearly established that the assault on the casual press centre in Bab Amr was a part of the Syrian regime’s express intention to focus on international journalists with a purpose to restrict media protection of its crimes and pressure them to depart town and the nation,” mentioned Mazen Darwish, a lawyer and the final director of the Syrian Centre for Media and Freedom of Expression, in an announcement.
Assad fled to Russia in December 2024 when rebel forces seized Syria with a fast offensive, ending greater than 5 a long time of rule by his household.
(Reporting by Makini BriceEditing by Gareth Jones)