Activists: No place for perpetrators of violence against women in Syria's Future

Since assuming control in Damascus, "Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham" has appointed several individuals involved in crimes against women to sensitive leadership positions, sparking widespread outrage among human rights and women’s rights circles in Syria.

On December 10, 2024, the group appointed “Shadi Muhammad al-Waisi” as Minister of Justice, despite confirmed involvement in the execution of two women in 2015—a move described as glorifying crime rather than holding perpetrators accountable. This decision was not an exception, but was followed by a series of controversial appointments, most notably the appointment of mercenary Ahmad al-Hayes, known as “Hatim Abu Shaqra,” one of the main suspects in the assassination of Hevrin Khalaf, the Secretary-General of the Future Syria Party, in October 2019.

These appointments, seen as a slap in the face to justice and women's rights, reflect what women's groups describe as a dangerous trend toward legitimizing violence against women and entrenching impunity within institutions that are supposed to protect the rights of the people and promote justice.

Nour Al-Hanafi, the administrator at the Zenobia Women’s Gathering Council in Tabqa, described the situation as tragic, saying: "Instead of prosecuting war criminals, we now see them in positions that are supposed to represent the aspirations of the Syrian people."

She added that these appointments do not herald any hopeful future for Syrian women, but rather open the door to new crimes.

Jumana Muhammad, also the member of the Zenobia Women’s Gathering Council, said the international community’s silence regarding these appطointments means that “Syrian women will face a dark future without protection or justice.”

Power of Marginalization and Threat

Rajaa Abdul Rahim, the spokeswoman for the Democratic Union Party’s women’s office in Tabqa, stated that the Damascus authorities not only politically marginalize women, but also reinforce this marginalization by handing leadership positions to those who committed crimes against women—an attempt to remove women entirely from the political scene.

She concluded:

"Our will is stronger than their crimes, and just as we defeated ISIS, we will bring war criminals to justice and build a free and just future for all in Syria."

Barin Maamo, the co-chair of the Future Syria Party in Tabqa, described the appointment of mercenary “Hatim Abu Shaqra” as the leader of Brigade 86 as “a disregard for the blood of martyrs and an insult to Syrian women.”

She confidently added: "Syrian women will not allow these criminals to remain, and we will continue our struggle for a decentralized, pluralistic Syria, free of crime."

Activists in North and East Syria stress that the international community's disregard for crimes committed against women opens the door for further violations in areas such as the coast and Sweida.

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ANHA