Shafaq News- Damascus

Damascus hosted the first public trial against high-ranking figures from the government of former President Bashar al-Assad on Sunday, with the opening session concluding without a verdict.

Shafaq News' correspondent reported that the session, held at the Palace of Justice in the Syrian capital, was dedicated to the case of defendant Atef Najib, who faces charges of committing crimes against the Syrian people. Former President, his brother Maher al-Assad, and former Defense Minister Fahd Jassem al-Freij were also called in absentia as defendants in the case.

Najib, a cousin of Bashar al-Assad, arrived at the courthouse in a security vehicle used for detainee transfers, dressed in prison clothing, before being escorted inside the Palace of Justice for proceedings. He previously served as head of the Political Security branch in Daraa province —the city where Syria's 2011 uprising began. He faces accusations of involvement in the suppression of protests and mass detentions carried out during the early weeks of the demonstrations.

The court set May 10 as the date for proceedings to resume.