Damascus arrests ex-official linked to sarin production
Shafaq News- Damascus
Syrian authorities apprehended a former senior official accused of overseeing sarin gas storage and chemical weapons production under the Bashar Al-Assad former government, the Interior Ministry said on Wednesday.
The detained, Ahmad Habib Ali, a chemical weapons specialist, viously headed the Scientific Studies and Research Center and was responsible for sarin gas storage and chemical weapons production at Unit 417.
According to the ministry, preliminary investigations indicate that Ali was among the officers who supervised the production of around 20 sarin-filled bombs, each weighing 250 kilograms, which were allegedly used in attacks targeting Syrian cities and towns between 2013 and 2017.
نفذت وحدات وزارة الداخلية في محافظة اللاذقية، عملية أمنية نوعية تمكنت خلالها من إلقاء القبض على العقيد أحمد حبيب علي، المختص بالأسلحة الكيميائية، والمنحدر من بلدة حرف المسيترة بريف القرداحة، والذي شغل منصب رئيس مركز الدراسات والبحوث العلمية، وكان مسؤولاً عن مستودعات غاز السارين… pic.twitter.com/0wqdGn2B0L
— وزارة الداخلية السورية (@syrianmoi) July 15, 2026
In April, Damascus held its first public trial of senior officials from former President Bashar al-Assad's government. The opening session focused on Atef Najib, a former Political Security chief in Daraa and cousin of al-Assad, who is accused of crimes against civilians during the 2011 uprising. Bashar al-Assad, his brother Maher, and former Defense Minister Fahd Jassem Al-Freij were also named as defendants in absentia, with the court adjourning the case without issuing a verdict.
