Vienna Court to Rule on Torture Charges Against Two Former Syrian Officers

A court in Vienna is set to deliver its judgment on Monday regarding two former Syrian officers accused of torturing opponents of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

This trial is among the latest in Europe involving suspects accused of crimes committed during the Syrian civil war, under the principle of "universal jurisdiction," which allows judges to adjudicate serious offenses committed abroad.

Khaled al-Halabi, a 63-year-old former Brigadier General in Syrian intelligence, has been held in pretrial detention since 2024. He faces charges including torture, sexual coercion, and multiple counts of causing grievous bodily harm.

Musab Abu Rakba, 54, a former police Lieutenant Colonel, is charged with causing grievous bodily harm and sexual coercion during his service in Raqqa between April 2011 and March 2013.

Both men pleaded not guilty at the start of their trial in June. They face prison sentences of up to 10 years if convicted.

Other Syrian officials have faced trials in France, Germany, Sweden, and Belgium on accusations of crimes committed during the civil war in Syria.

The Austrian prosecution accused the two men of having "issued orders on numerous occasions or failed to prevent the mistreatment of members of a protest movement."

Al-Halabi, a Druze who fled Raqqa in 2013 before ISIS took control of the city, denied that any torture took place under his command.

Several detainees testified before the court about being severely beaten by guards while the accused were in charge of the detention facility.

One man recounted, "I still feel fear to this day," describing how al-Halabi interrogated him and beat the soles of his feet with electric cables.

Other detainees spoke of being held in cramped, overcrowded cells. One testified that he was kept naked for eight or nine days, repeatedly doused with cold water.

The prosecution stated that al-Halabi received "direct instructions" from the Damascus government and systematically employed violence through "typical torture methods."

Both former Syrian officers applied for asylum in Austria in 2015.

In 2023, two senior Austrian officials accused of providing protection to the former Brigadier General were acquitted.