Lebanon extradites former Syrian military officer to face trial
DAMASCUS, Syria — Lebanon on Wednesday extradited a former Syrian military officer under ousted President Bashar Assad, who will face trial in Syria, reports BritPanorama.
Maj. Gen. Adel Issa is the first military officer to be turned over by Lebanon since Assad’s fall in late 2024. Lebanon’s judicial authorities made the decision on Tuesday after questioning Issa regarding alleged crimes committed during the country’s conflict.
Syria’s Interior Ministry requested Issa’s extradition for numerous alleged offenses, including the intentional killing of more than two persons, torture resulting in death, and acts of aggression aimed at inciting civil war and sectarian strife.
Issa served as the commander of the Syrian army’s 17th Division and led ground forces in the eastern province of Deir el-Zour until 2016. Photographs released by the ministry showed Issa in a prison uniform.
Officials in Beirut indicated that the extradition complied with a 1951 agreement between Lebanon and Syria concerning the delivery of suspected criminals for trial.
Following the entry of anti-Assad fighters into Damascus in December 2024, numerous military and security officials fled to Lebanon, where some remain. Other former security personnel have been arrested and tried for atrocities in Syria.
Last week, a Syrian court sentenced Assad and his brother Maher to death in absentia, while Brig. Gen. Atef Najib, a senior security official, was sentenced to death while in custody. The Assad brothers reportedly fled to Russia during the upheaval.
Issa was detained on August 8 when he visited the Syrian Embassy in Beirut for administrative purposes. Embassy officials informed Lebanon’s prosecutor’s office that Issa was wanted for arrest in Syria.
Having crossed into Lebanon illegally after Assad’s fall, Issa’s extradition marks a significant development in the ongoing efforts to bring to justice those accused of crimes during Syria’s prolonged conflict, which has resulted in approximately 500,000 deaths and over a million injuries since it began in March 2011.
