Ousted ex-president of Syria Bashar al-Assad sentenced to death

The ruling came in on Tuesday morning. 09:43, Tue, Aug 11, 2026 Updated: 09:49, Tue, Aug 11, 2026 Bashar al-Assad fled to Russia in late 2024 (Image: Getty)Syria’s ex-president Bashar al-Assad and Atef Najib, the former head of political security in southern Syria’s Deraa province, have been sentenced to death. The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), the country's state news agency, announced the verdict in a breaking news update on Tuesday.SANA reported that a court had convicted Assad of crimes against humanity and issued the death penalty. The agency, which is affiliated with Syria's Ministry of Information and headquartered in Damascus, did not immediately provide further details about the court proceedings. Its breaking news report was published at 11.29am local time on August 11. Assad w