France’s National Anti-Terror Prosecutor’s Office (PNAT) formally requested a new arrest warrant against former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Monday, according to Euractiv.
This development follows Friday’s landmark ruling by France’s highest judicial authority, the Court of Cassation, which invalidated a 2023 arrest warrant against al-Assad on grounds of presidential immunity but explicitly cleared the path for new warrants now that he is no longer in office.
The Court of Cassation underscored that “international custom does not allow any exception to the personal immunity of a foreign head of state during the entire duration of their term in office, even when the alleged acts constitute genocide, war crimes, or crimes against humanity.”
However, it emphasised that an arrest warrant could now be pursued since al-Assad “no longer holds the position of Head of State.”
The PNAT acted swiftly upon this clarification, seeking judicial authorisation to issue and internationally disseminate the warrant concerning the alleged August 2013 chemical assaults in Ghouta and Adra. These attacks, involving sarin gas, killed over 1,000 civilians according to US intelligence assessments, with victims exhibiting symptoms including convulsions, foaming at the mouth, and respiratory failure characteristic of nerve agents.
Assad’s dramatic flight to Russia in December 2024, after Islamist-led rebels seized Damascus and ended his family’s five-decade rule, fundamentally altered his legal standing. Russian authorities confirmed granting him asylum, shielding him from extradition to countries seeking his prosecution.
This fresh French warrant request specifically designates Assad as “commander-in-chief of the armed forces” during the Ghouta attacks, mirroring the legal rationale behind a separate French arrest warrant issued in January 2025. That warrant targets Assad for complicity in war crimes related to a 2017 barrel bomb attack in Deraa that killed Franco-Syrian teacher Salah Abou Nabout.
While human rights organisations like the Open Society Justice Initiative acknowledged the Court of Cassation’s decision as “a missed opportunity for justice,” they noted it crucially permits ongoing investigations and future prosecutions against the ousted leader.
