Lebanese Justice Minister Adel Nassar said the Syrian government has not formally requested that Lebanon hand over members of the former regime.
In an interview with Saudi channel Al Arabiya on Saturday, 31 January, Nassar said Western countries had requested the handover of figures from the former Syrian regime.
He added that Beirut hopes Damascus will help address assassinations carried out by the former regime in Lebanon over the past years.
On 29 January, the Syrian Network for Human Rights issued a new report on Lebanon’s legal obligations toward individuals suspected of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity in Syria, amid a reality in which impunity still dominates the scene.
The report said the fall of the Assad government in December 2024 marked a pivotal turning point that ended decades of repression, but did not deliver justice for victims.
Many former regime leaders fled Syria, particularly to Lebanon, which the report described as a refuge for some of them, including figures under international sanctions or wanted by judicial authorities.
Damascus Wants to Transfer All Prisoners
Regarding Syrian detainees in Lebanon who were arrested on political grounds, not those implicated in war-related violations, the Lebanese justice minister said coordination is ongoing between the two countries, noting that about 300 Syrian prisoners are covered by a transfer agreement from Lebanon to Syria.
Damascus wanted to transfer all Syrian prisoners, Nassar said, explaining, “including those convicted or wanted, without conditions, including in murder cases.”
He stressed that the Lebanese state is working to speed up the trials of “Islamist detainees,” describing the issue as “a complex file in the country that has, for years, been the subject of push and pull.”
Handover of More Than 300 Syrian Prisoners
Lebanon’s Council of Ministers approved, in its session held on 30 January, an agreement with Syria on transferring convicted persons from the country where the sentence was issued to the country of the detainee’s nationality.
Lebanese Deputy Prime Minister Tarek Mitri said Beirut intends to hand over more than 300 Syrian prisoners to Damascus under an agreement between the two countries.
Mitri’s remarks came in response to journalists’ questions after the Council of Ministers session held at the Lebanese Presidency headquarters in Baabda, in the capital Beirut.
Mitri said the Lebanese cabinet approved an agreement with Damascus stipulating the handover of convicted prisoners to complete their sentences in their home country.
He explained that the agreement covers those who have served more than 10 years in Lebanese prisons, equivalent to about 7 years in effective terms.
Social Rehabilitation of Convicted Prisoners
Lebanese newspaper Al Akhbar published, on 29 January, a draft of the agreement between Lebanon and Syria.
According to the newspaper, the agreement provides for strengthening cooperation between the two sides in criminal matters and facilitating the social rehabilitation of convicted prisoners, based on the principles of sovereignty, equality, reciprocity, and non-interference in internal affairs.
Both parties commit to providing the greatest possible mutual assistance regarding the transfer of convicted persons. Transfers take place only if the person holds the nationality of the state enforcing the sentence and does not hold the nationality of the state that issued the ruling. The convicted person, or their legal representative, may submit a transfer request to either state. Each state may also submit a request to the other.
The agreement sets out basic conditions for transfers, most notably that the ruling must be final, the person must not be subject to another trial, and explicit written consent to the transfer must be provided, either by the person or by their legal representative if they are unable to express their will.
It also requires that the criminal acts be punishable under the laws of the enforcing state, and that both states explicitly approve the transfer, with an exception for crimes related to murder or rape, unless the convicted person has served 10 years in the sentencing state.
In return, the sentencing state may refuse the transfer if it considers it harmful to its sovereignty, security, or public order, if the convicted person has not met financial obligations, or if the sentence cannot be enforced in the enforcing state for legal reasons.
The agreement designates the justice ministries in both countries as the central authorities empowered to implement its provisions, with the possibility of direct contact or communication through diplomatic channels.
It also obliges each party to take measures to prevent the transferred person from entering the state that issued the ruling unless special written permission is granted, even after the sentence has been completed, in line with the applicable laws governing the entry of foreigners.
The agreement confirms the principle that a person may not be tried twice for the same crime after their transfer. It also obliges the enforcing state to end enforcement of the sentence as soon as it receives an official notification from the sentencing state to halt or amend enforcement. If any amendment is introduced to the ruling, the sentencing state must immediately send the new version so it can be applied accordingly.
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