Jaish Al Islam war crimes charges heard in Paris court
The trial of a Syrian former rebel spokesman in Paris has heard how he assisted the group in preparing deliberate attacks on civilians that included war crimes. Mejdi Nema, 36, who served as spokesman for the rebel faction Jaish Al Islam between 2013 and 2016, has been accused of playing a key role in a group that was responsible for 'wilful attacks on life' during the Syrian protests. Prosecutors accuse Mr Nema of complicity in acts of torture, killings and use of civilians as human shields - allegations that Jaish Al Islam itself has denied. In 2015, the group allegedly placed Alawite women in cages on rooftops to discourage bombardments by the regime. Mr Nema is being prosecuted under France's universal jurisdiction laws, reserved for the gravest international offences such as war crimes, torture and crimes against humanity. Court documents allege that Mr Nema was careful to avoid leaving a digital trail during his time with the rebels. Contacted by journalists during atrocities, he was asked 'what was going on with the cages'. The state case shows he did not answer or suggested other ways of communicating. French investigators, however, uncovered data from Mr Nema's iPhone and laptop and spoke to witnesses that cast doubts on his claims of marginal involvement. One Syrian witness said he was personally hired at age 13 by Mr Nema to join Jaish Al Islam. At the time, people were so poor that they were known to send their children to fight for rebel groups for $100 a month. Photos also show him wearing military fatigues and carrying weapons. Messages show that he conveyed tactical information such as: 'Thank you for doing reperage [sic] and observation.' In his CV, he wrote he was 'commander of Jaish Al Islam training camps in northern Syria' and 'supervisor of the zone between Al Bab and Raqqa'. The proceedings have put renewed focus on brutal sectarian crimes committed more than a decade ago during Syria's civil war – many of which remain unpunished. The defendant rejects the allegations and denies any involvement in alleged atrocities committed by the group. 'I'm a politician,' he told the court, standing behind a glass enclosure. Mr Nema has been in pretrial detention since 2019, when he was arrested during a student exchange trip to Marseille. The trial is set to run until May 27. According to court documents viewed by The National, French prison doctors assessing his mental state described him as exhibiting traits ranging from 'antisocial, even psychopathic' to 'calm, respectful, attentive, confident and patient'. One of his brothers called him 'brilliant'. Mr Nema has not yet been allowed to address the charges in detail. He has repeatedly said he would rather be tried in Syria, though no extradition request is known to have been lodged by Damascus. Following the fall of the Assad regime in December, Syria is governed by former rebel groups. Though Mr Nema's defence argued that he would face a fair trial in the Syrian capital, the country remains volatile, with reports of revenge killings and massacres. 'It is clear that the transitional justice that could be implemented in Syria is very uncertain and is in its infancy,' said First Deputy Prosecutor at France's National Anti-Terrorism Office Sophie Havard. In his defence, Mr Nema is set to emphasise his residence in Turkey since 2013, claiming he was not involved in Jaish Al Islam's operational decisions. During a short stint in prison in 2009, he struck up a friendship with the group's leader Zahran Alloush, who died in 2015. They were so close that he chose a similar nom-de-guerre: Islam Alloush. Born in Saudi Arabia in 1988, Mr Nema moved to the north-west Syrian city of Idlib at the age of three. He later studied medicine in Damascus while engaging in anti-regime activism and operating several businesses, including a pharmacy, a restaurant and a cafe. In 2012, one year after the start of the civil war, he defected from the Syrian army to join the group that would become Jaish Al Islam. Mr Nema has sought to present himself as a moderate voice within the movement, claiming he advocated for peace with Israel, supported participation in UN-backed Geneva talks, and opposed the recruitment of child soldiers. He denied sharing Jaish Al Islam's salafist ideology. 'My mission was very clear: I was given information and told 'you must say this, or that',' he said. The prosecution argues there is evidence that Mr Nema was close to the group's operations. Messages also describe negotiations with ISIS over prisoner swaps, and reference executions. 'Brothers at Jaish put the body in the car and carried the beheaded head in their hands before exhibiting it,' reads one of the messages. Mr Nema told French investigators that he could not recall the incident. Exhibiting a decapitated head is a 'violation of international humanitarian law', he said, though the execution itself must 'not necessarily be qualified as a war crime'.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Middle East Eye
2 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
US backs Syrian plan to absorb foreign fighters into national army: Report
The US appears to have backed a plan by the Syrian government to assimilate thousands of foreign rebel fighters into the Syrian national army, Reuters reported on Monday. An estimated 3,500 foreign fighters, mainly Uighurs from China and Central Asia, would join a new unit called the 84th Syrian army division, also comprised of Syrians, three Syrian defence officials told Reuters. Tom Barrack, the US ambassador to Turkey and President Donald Trump's special envoy to Syria, told Reuters that the US government sought transparency and said there was an understanding between the US and Syria. Later on Tuesday, Barrack praised Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, saying he had taken'meaningful steps' on foreign fighters. Barrack said the two met in Istanbul on Saturday. Barrack said it was a better strategy to contain the fighters than exclude them, as many are "very loyal" to the new government. This approach reverses the US's previous demand that the new leadership exclude foreign fighters. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters The change is seen to be a result of Trump's visit to the Middle East in May, when he agreed to meet Syria's new leader and lift the US's long-term sanctions on Syria. Syria has been under sanctions since 1979, when the US labelled Damascus a state sponsor of terrorism under the government of Hafez al-Assad, father of deposed Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad. Barrack also told Turkish media that the US would be reducing its military presence in the country. Foreign fighters Syria's Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and linked groups were instrumental in toppling Bashar last year after a 13-year civil war between rebel groups and the former leader. Jordan's king warned US against assassinating Syria's Sharaa before Trump meeting Read More » HTS was comprised of many Uighurs who mostly came from China during the Syrian civil war and were persecuted in China. Uighurs are one of 55 recognised ethnic minorities in China and are Turkic-speaking. They are largely Sunni Muslims and live in the country's northwest Xinjiang province, which has had intermittent autonomy over the past few centuries. Most of the Chinese and Central Asian fighters belong to the Turkistan Islamic Party, designated a terrorist group by China. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said in a statement to Reuters that "China hopes that Syria will oppose all forms of terrorism and extremist forces in response to the concerns of the international community." The Chinese government is accused of detaining more than one million Uighurs and other Muslim minorities in the eastern Xinjiang region and subjecting the community to abuses some have labelled a "genocide". China denies all allegations of abuse. Western powers have been concerned about foreign fighters in Syria. Sharaa has argued that bringing foreign fighters into the national army is less of a security risk than discarding them, as they would be more susceptible to being recruited by al-Qaeda or the Islamic State militant groups. The National reported that foreign fighters will be granted Syrian citizenship.
The National
3 hours ago
- The National
Stanley Tucci doesn't want to be globetrotting food expert like Anthony Bourdain
Stanley Tucci has a lot of time to think, and he hates it. The American actor, 64, has spent the majority of his life making movies – Conclave, The Devil Wears Prada, The Hunger Games, to name a few – and as much as he loves acting, he laments the fact that he doesn't actually do all that much of it. 'Acting doesn't fulfil me as much as it used to,' Tucci tells The National. 'You're on these sets for 12 to 13 hours a day, and you may only act for 20 minutes of that time. I end up thinking, 'there's got to be a better way to do this!' I just want to keep going and going – I'm very impatient. 'I get paid to wait. It's the acting I do for free. That's the way I feel, at this point.' The problem is, when you're sitting around all day, you're rarely learning something – even about yourself. It's a problem we all have – but he has lost patience with that disconnect. Which is why, over the last decade, Tucci has gone out into the world to learn more about who he really is – through travel and especially through food. 'I think we've gotten out of touch with ourselves physically,' Tucci explains. 'One of the reasons is we're all sitting in front of computers, or on our phones all the time – or myself, waiting on a set – and desk work is far more prominent than doing any kind of labour.' In Tucci's mind, it's all connected. By focusing more on what he eats, he's thought more about where it comes from – the land, and the culture and traditions the land inspires. And by starting at the source, we see ourselves more clearly. 'Getting in touch with the land is so important. From the land comes our food, and then the food goes onto the table, and into us,' says Tucci. Growing up, Tucci was also quite disconnected from his roots. He didn't understand why all the other kids at his small-town school 75km outside of New York City were eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and he was having leftovers his mother had packed him of last night's eggplant parmigiana. But with each passing decade, he has increasingly immersed himself in his Italian heritage – and embracing even its flaws. And by focusing his journey on food, he has ended up learning more about the country's rich complexities than one might imagine. All of this is in service to understanding the country – and himself – better. 'I don't want to romanticise Italy. I think that's been done ad nauseam. I think it's not interesting and it's not truthful,' says Tucci. Tucci in Italy, his new National Geographic series broadcast weekly in the UAE and available to stream on Disney+, embraces what he feels is the true Italy. In the first episode, for example, he explores Tuscany, focusing specifically on dishes that were created by and for the working class. First he tries lampredotto, the Florentine street food sandwich made from the fourth stomach of a cow. It's named after the eels that once inhabited the Arno river, and only the rich could afford. The tripe dish, then, was invented to imitate its flavours. But the story doesn't stop here. Tucci then finds another old peasant dish made with imitation tripe by those that couldn't even afford cow stomach. That one might even be his favourite. Politically speaking, there's a reason that he focuses on the lower class – at a time when, once again, immigrants and the poor are being scapegoated, both in Italy and in the US. It's something his immigrant family likely went through once, too. 'I think particularly in today's climate, immigrants are vilified and wrongly so, because they have so much to bring to a culture. Millions of Italians once came over to America, and they were vilified to a certain extent. Also, I think that's something that Italian Americans have to remember, and Italians themselves should remember, too,' says Tucci. But as much as he's enjoyed diving into the unexplored corners of Italy for the series – with another season already shot and set to air next year – he's also adamant that his journey will stop there. While he wants to go deeper into his ancestral homeland, a project he started with the CNN series Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy in 2021, he doesn't want to explore the rest of the world on camera. It's clear he doesn't want to be the next Anthony Bourdain – the late chef who grew internationally famous for his globetrotting food series Parts Unknown. 'I don't want to do different regions and different countries, because I don't think that would be appropriate. I don't have a connection to those countries,' Tucci explains. In fact, it sounds like Tucci doesn't think there should be another Anthony Bourdain at all. Instead, he wants the Tucci in Italy model to be repeated globally – starring figures who are looking to explore their roots, not modern-day adventurers looking to become the Indiana Jones of restaurants. 'I think it would be more interesting to have somebody like me explore those countries in the way that I've done it – and they need to have a connection to those countries. They need to speak the language, and they have to really, really appreciate the food – not just like to eat. 'They have to know food and be willing to explore and ask questions. It's not just about what's delicious – it's about understanding the passion of the people that make it.' The next season of Tucci in Italy may be the final food travel series for Tucci. 'I'm kind of tired,' he says. Tucci is grappling with the fact that, at 64, he's aging. And part of knowing himself now is about knowing how to navigate his limitations. He's doing that by focusing, once again, on food. 'As a person who's getting older, your body is changing all the time – meaning it's getting weaker all the time. You need to know what it is you need to strengthen yourself - to keep yourself strong. Otherwise I'll grow impatient with myself, too.'
Middle East Eye
6 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
Hezbollah can recover after its costly war with Israel, senior official says
Hezbollah can recover from the heavy military defeat it suffered at the hands of Israel because it still has the backing of the Lebanese people, Ibrahim Mousawi, a sitting MP from Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc, has told Middle East Eye. Speaking in the Lebanese capital Beirut, Mousawi, a member of the Loyalty to the Resistance bloc, however, accepted that Hezbollah was facing several hurdles after much of its leadership was wiped out, and after it lost control of key assets such as Beirut airport and smuggling routes along the Syrian border. "Everybody knows we are in a difficult situation," Mousawi said. "[But how] did we start the resistance? We built it ourselves little by little. It is one of the miracles of history, the sacrifice for our land. It's very difficult and [we are in] tough times - but we will continue to struggle," he added. On 8 October 2023, a day after Israel launched its war on Gaza, Hezbollah opened a limited battlefront with Israel in support of Hamas and Palestinians under attack in the besieged enclave. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters For nearly a year, the conflict was mostly limited to clashes in the border areas between Lebanon and Israel. But in September, Israel exploded thousands of pagers used by Hezbollah members before launching a widespread bombing campaign across the country followed by a ground invasion. Dozens of villages were erased and more than 3,900 Lebanese killed, including the group's charismatic and long-time leader Hassan Nasrallah. After Hezbollah signed up to a lopsided ceasefire on 27 November, Israel has repeatedly flaunted its dominance over Lebanon by occupying five strategic points in the south. Walid Jumblatt says Arab leaders must wake up to Israeli expansionism Read More » It has also repeatedly carried out air strikes on areas in the south and in late March, conducted its first raid on Beirut in four months. According to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data project (ACLED), an American NGO which tracks violence, Israel carried out at least 330 aerial attacks between 27 November and 10 January 2025, destroying at least 260 properties in the first 60 days of the truce. Mousawi said that Hezbollah was shouldering its responsibility towards Lebanon and covering the costs of rehousing southerners made homeless by Israel's war. He said the movement had spent more than $1bn on rents and salaries for those displaced by the violence. "We have done a great part in the recovery process," he said. "It's not there yet and in some aspects it is not estimated that we will [get back to where we were]," he added. 'The Israelis want our land' Mousawi said that despite the destruction, which saw countless social, financial and medical Hezbollah-run institutions destroyed, the movement would continue to remain active and resist Israeli expansionism. "When you lose one battle, the important thing to recognise is that the environment of resistance is still there and so is Hezbollah's social matrix," he said. "Why do we have a resistance? Because the Israelis want our land. When you don't have a strong army to defend you, and America continues to deprive the Lebanese army of the means to defend itself, you are left with no other option than resistance," Mousawi added. While Israel is yet to complete its withdrawal from southern Lebanon, which was scheduled under the terms of the ceasefire for 18 February, Mousawi confirmed that Hezbollah had handed over its arms and pulled back its forces from their positions south of the Litani River in accordance with UN Resolution 1701 passed after their previous war with Israel in 2006. But he denied the movement was in talks with Joseph Aoun, the Lebanese president and former chief of staff of the Lebanese army to hand over the rest of its arsenal of heavy weapons. "Hezbollah has handed over its arms south of the Litani [River]. When you talk about other arms, this is a sovereign discussion which is going to be discussed at a national level. "This is something for the Lebanon president who is prudent. The way he is handling the issues, it gives you an indication of what kind of man he is." Mousawi framed those discussions as Hezbollah's part in a "National Strategy Security Plan" to make sure that Lebanon can defend itself. Mousawi also heaped praise on the Lebanese army, despite it choosing to sit out Israel's war and battles with Hezbollah. "Who are the Lebanese army? They are brave people," he said. "My father was in the Lebanese army. My brother was in the Lebanese army. Some of them are martyrs but they are not being given the orders to fight and they don't have the equipment. "Our Lebanese army are strong and brave and they can do the mission if they have the right orders. We will be with them, the people of the land." 'We will work with anyone against Israel' Still, Mousawi was bitterly critical of the committee chaired by US General Jasper Jeffers, whose job it is to monitor the ceasefire, which he said gave Israel the scope to continue carrying out attacks in the south of the country. "We are under some kind of American mandate. This can give Lebanon scores of issues, but one thing I am sure of, the Americans won't succeed." Mousawi also said the fall of Syria's former president, Bashar al-Assad, presented a major change in the balance of power. Israel's aggression in Syria advances a century-long plan to co-opt the Druze Read More » "What happened in Syria is a major loss for the axis of resistance," he said. "It was in power for nearly 60 years and it went in days and hours." Syrian rebels, led by the now dissolved Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), seized the capital Damascus early on 7 December, as Assad fled to Russia, ending more than five decades of brutal dynastic rule. In the space of 10 days, the rebels captured Aleppo, Hama and Homs, with little resistance from demoralised Syrian troops. Assad's forces also pulled out of Deir Ezzor in the east, which was then taken by the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces. When asked whether Hezbollah would work with President Ahmed al-Sharaa or any future Syrian administration, Mousawi said the Shia movement was prepared to "work with anyone against Israel". But he said there were certain new realities that Sharaa would have to face. "I believe that no ruler, no president can oppose the unanimous will of his people. We believe in Arab nationalism. Let us hope that Syria will stay in the right position to be part of those who oppose the occupation. "In Hezbollah we are open to anyone to gain arms to oppose Israel. This is a period of rebuilding your capabilities in order to come back to your previous strength. Israel cannot get a hold of this region. The soul of revolution will always fight back," he added. 'No one in the camps is giving up their arms' Separately, a Palestinian source in southern Lebanon told MEE that whilst Hezbollah fighter fought bravely on the ground, the blows it received in Beirut and elsewhere "had a huge effect" on its fighting units. "Many of the fighters fled with their families, which gave Hezbollah an indication that they could not hold their positions on the ground much longer," the source, who is close to resistance groups, said. "Hezbollah were desperate to sign the ceasefire agreement because they could not have held on for even one month longer." 'The arms are a symbol of our cause and our resistance. The moment we give up our arms, is the moment we have given up our cause' - Palestinian Islamic Jihad source In April, a Hezbollah source told the AFP news agency that the movement had ceded 190 out of 265 military positions south of the Litani River to the Lebanese army. Meanwhile, informed sources outside of Hezbollah told MEE that the disarmament of all armed groups in Lebanon was a long way off, despite Washington imposing excessive pressure on the Lebanese government. Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas was recently in Beirut on a three-day mission, and Palestinian and Lebanese sources told MEE that the trip was intimately tied to disarming Palestinian factions in the country's refugee camps. After meeting President Aoun, a joint statement released on the Lebanese presidency's X (formerly Twitter) account said there was a commitment by "both sides to the principle that all weapons in the country must be controlled by state authorities'. However, several sources told MEE that Palestinian factions, who largely posses a range of light to medium weapons, would refrain from relinquishing their weapons due to fears of potential massacres. This was confirmed by interviews MEE conducted in Beirut's Burj al-Barajneh camp. Najwa refused to leave her village so Israeli troops shot her in her home Read More » Palestinians in Lebanon vividly remember the 1982 Sabra and Shatila massacre, when Israel-backed Christian Lebanese militiamen killed between 800 and 3,500 civilians, mostly women, children, and the elderly. "No one in the camps is giving up their arms," Zaki, a man affiliated with Islamic Jihad, told MEE. "The arms are a symbol of our cause and our resistance. The moment we give up our arms, is the moment we have given up our cause. All factions of the resistance received a hit but will come back much stronger, as they have done in the past." A Palestinian academic source summed up the mood of all Palestinian factions in the camps, telling MEE: "How is it only the question of Palestinian arms?" "All the main political parties, even the Druze, have their own arms," he said. "If every single party has its own arms, what is the problem of Palestinians defending themselves? "Palestinians don't have heavy weapons. So let us talk about the problem of arms in the whole of the Lebanese community before we talk about any one group disarming," he added.
