France has issued an international warrant for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who is accused of involvement in the 2013 chemical attacks, which is a crime against humanity.
France has issued an arrest warrant for Assad.
A court source told Agence France-Presse (AFP) that Assad is also suspected of involvement in war crimes that killed more than 1,400 people in August 2013 near Damascus.
International arrest warrants were also issued for Assad’s brother, Mahed, the de facto head of Syria's elite military unit, and two generals of the armed forces.
The Crimes Against Humanity Division of the Paris Court has been investigating the chemical attacks since 2021. France claims worldwide jurisdiction over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.
What is known about the war in Syria
The civil war in Syria began in 2011 after Assad's suppression of peaceful demonstrations turned into a military conflict involving foreign countries and global jihadists.
In 2015, the Russian Federation joined Assad's forces and began an intervention in Syria. This was justified by the fight against ISIS. After that, Assad took control of most of the country's territory.
Turkey is also participating in the war, which wants to suppress the Kurdish movement in northern Syria.
As a result of the war, more than half a million people died, and half of the pre-war population of the country was forcibly displaced.
Bashar al-Assad inherited power from his father and has been president since 2000, even though the presidential term in the country is seven years.
