Former Syrian officer faces war crimes charges in Swedish court

According to AFP Agency, the highest-ranking Syrian military official to be tried in Europe on Monday appeared before a Stockholm court accused of war crimes during Syria's civil war.

Former brigadier general Mohammed Hamo, 65 who lives in Sweden, is accused of "aiding and abetting" war crimes and could get a life jail sentence.

Since the outbreak of the popular movement in Syria on March 15, 2011, which quickly turned into a multi-party armed conflict, the authorities have used violence to suppress it. The conflict caused the death of more than half a million people, massive destruction to infrastructure and led to the displacement of millions of people inside and outside the country.

According to the indictment, Hamo contributed, through “advice and action,” to attacks carried out by Damascus government forces, “which included systematic, indiscriminate attacks on several towns or places on the outskirts and inside the cities of Hama and Homs.”

The charges relate to the period extending from January 1 to July 20, 2012, and the trial is expected to continue until late May.

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ANHA