Alaa Mousa

Alaa Mousa commonly referred to as Alaa M., in German legal documents due to privacy laws, is a Syrian doctor who was convicted by The Frankfurt Higher Regional Court for crimes of war and crimes against humanity.

Biography and career

Alaa Mousa was born in 1984 or 1985 in Syria.[1][2] He graduated medical studies in Syria and began working as a civilian doctor.[3] As with all Syrian medical graduates, he was obligated to complete an internship at either civilian or military hospitals in order to receive his specialization certificate.[4] He worked in military hospitals in Homs and Damascus — the most notable ones between 2011-2012 were hospital 608 in Homs and hospital 6012 in Damascus, in the early days of the Syrian civil war.[3][4][5]

Alleged crimes in Syria

During his time working in military hospitals he was acused of commiting torture and murder along with crimes against humanity, which included: torture of about 18 people among them a teenager who he set fire to his genitals and another detanee he gave a leathel injection after resisting beating.[3][4][5] He performed surgery on prisoners without giving them the right amount of anesthesia and attempting to deprive opposition detainees of their ability to reproduce.[2][4][5] He was also involved in systematic abuse, including physical and psychological torture, that often resulting in death of detanees.[1][4][5]

Move to Germany

During 2015 Alaa Mousa relocated to Germany. He entered the country with a visa for highly skilled workers along with thousands of Syrian refugees and medical professionals who run away from the conflict.[2][3] He then worked in Germany as an orthopedic doctor. In June 2020 he was arrested by German authorities after being recognized by witnesses and survivors who reported about his past crimes.[2][6][5]

Trial

On January 2022 his trail began at the Higher Regional Court in Frankfurt.[2][3] This case was conducted under Germany’s universal jurisdiction laws, allowing prosecution for crimes committed abroad.[3][5] The trial that lasted three years, was the first time a trial on state torture in Syria has taken place worldwide.[5]

Verdict

On June 16, 2025 he was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment with preventive detention after 15 years for his crimes against humanity, murder and war crimes.[1][3][4]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Reuters (2025-06-16). "Germany hands Syrian doctor life for torturing Assad critics | MarketScreener". www.marketscreener.com. Retrieved 2025-06-18. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  2. ^ a b c d e "German court convicts Syrian doctor of crimes against humanity". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2025-06-18.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g "German court jails Syrian 'torture' doctor for life". 2025.
  4. ^ a b c d e f "Syrian Doctor's Germany Trial, A Message to Intl Community". en.majalla.com. Retrieved 2025-06-18.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Yang, Joshua; Wiener, Aaron; Noll, Ben; Leonnig, Carol; Allison, Natalie; LeVine, Marianne; Gurley, Lauren Kaori; Nelson, Dustin; Gowen, Annie (2025-06-16). "Syrian doctor gets life sentence in Germany for slayings, torture under Assad". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2025-06-18.
  6. ^ "Doctor goes on trial in Germany accused of torture in Syria". spectrumnews1.com. Retrieved 2025-06-18.
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