Vienna Court Trials Syrian Ex‑Officials for Systematic Torture

The Landesgericht Wien continued the trial of two former Syrian Assad‑regime officials, Khaled Al H. and Moussab Abou R., accused of orchestrating systematic torture of at least 21 detainees in Raqqa. Witnesses described cramped underground cells only 2.5 × 3.5 m that held more than 20 people, extreme heat, lack of sanitation, and frequent beatings and threats.

One former lawyer recounted being dragged to a vehicle, insulted and struck on the head after a peaceful protest in August 2011. He testified that the detainees were forced to share a single room with a toilet and no hygiene supplies, leading to breathing difficulties and hunger strikes. The trial also noted that Khaled Al H. was brought to Austria in 2015 through a covert deal involving foreign intelligence agencies and has been detained since December 2024, while Moussab Abou R. remains at large. The prosecution emphasizes the defendants' roles as heads of the Syrian intelligence department 335 and the criminal police in Raqqa, respectively. "Natürlich wurde systematisch gefoltert" ("Naturally, systematic torture was carried out") was quoted by a witness during testimony.