Former Syrian air force colonel unfit for UK trial over 2011 killings

A London judge has found Salem al-Salem, a 58-year-old former Syrian air force colonel, unfit to stand trial on charges of murder as crimes against humanity because of an advanced motor neuron disease. Not guilty pleas were entered on his behalf at the Central Criminal Court after prosecutors accepted medical evidence that his condition has left him paralyzed in all four limbs, cognitively impaired and with severely restricted speech. Justice Bobbie Cheema-Grubb said al-Salem will face a trial of facts next year to determine whether he committed the alleged acts, but he will not be required to appear in court.

Allegations and charges

Prosecutors say al-Salem was part of an Air Force Intelligence unit that helped suppress demonstrations in the Damascus suburb of Jobar during the 2011 crackdown, allegedly ordering officers to shoot protesters and personally shooting some victims. He is charged with three counts of murder in the deaths of Omar Al-Homsi, Nizar Fayoumi-AlKhatib and Talhat Dalal, an ancillary murder count related to Mohammed Salim Zahrak Balik, and multiple counts of torture for his reported participation in violent interrogations. The case is the first in the U.K. to bring murder charges as crimes against humanity under the International Criminal Court Act 2001; the forthcoming trial of facts can establish whether the acts occurred but cannot result in a conviction because of his medical condition, as reported by AP News

This story has also been reported by: ABC News