Date Set for Former Syria Grand Mufti Ahmad Hasoon's Trial

The Fourth Criminal Court in the Syrian capital Damascus revealed today, Thursday, the date for the trial of former Syria Grand Mufti Ahmad Hasoon, accused of inciting violence and justifying killings during the Assad regime.

Court judge Fakhr al-Din al-Arjan presided over the fifth session of the trial of suspect Ahmad Hasoon, attended by representatives from national and international human rights organizations.

According to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), the court set the date for the next session, scheduled for August 24 of this year, for review and sentencing.

The fourth session was held on July 30, during which the court heard testimony from public prosecution witnesses who disclosed details about financial extortion and abuse of influence by the suspect Hasoon.

One witness recounted repeated extortion against himself and his family due to his sister's arrest by security branches, demanding approximately $65,000 USD, along with material goods including 20 robes 'for Iranians,' 100 kg of luxury sweets 'for Russians,' and diesel fuel (mazut), plus daily requests from Hasoon's office.

The session saw the presence of two representatives from a group of plaintiffs, one of whom submitted a written memorandum urging the conviction of the suspect for issuing fatwas permitting murder and abusing his position.

The first session of the trial of suspect Hasoon was held on June 25, charging him with multiple offenses, including exploiting his position as Republic's Grand Mufti for personal gain, establishing extensive relationships beyond official ties with the deposed head of state Bashar al-Assad, General Intelligence Directorate director Ali Mamlouk, senior military officers, and leaders of sectarian militias fighting in Syria.

The charges also include inciting members and officers of the former regime army to support the regime against its opponents, making media statements that incited violence against civilians in rebel-held areas and refugees fleeing regime oppression—particularly in eastern Aleppo and Idlib—and requesting the destruction of these regions by the regime army.

In addition, the charges include publicly endorsing, in his official and symbolic role as Grand Mufti of the Republic, military officers and figures implicated in war crimes, including Assem Zahr al-Din and Qasem Soleimani, as well as supporting both Russian and Iranian interventions in Syria despite the atrocities and massacres committed by those forces and militias against Syrians.

SANA reported that Syrian judiciary continues conducting trials against individuals accused of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity against the Syrian people during the former regime’s rule, aiming at transitional justice to uncover the truth, provide redress to victims, and hold perpetrators accountable according to judicial standards.