Syria's former Grand Mufti under ousted President Bashar Assad, Ahmad Badreddine Hassoun, listened to a life sentence at the Palace of Justice in Damascus. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Associated Press.
Judge Fakhreddine al-Aryan, head of the Fourth Criminal Court, read the ruling on Monday, Aug. 24, 2026. Hassoun was in the defendants' cage as he heard the court's decision.
Photographs by Associated Press photographer Ghaith Alsayed captured Hassoun during the trial. The verdict demonstrates the continuation of judicial processes after the fall of Assad's regime in Syria.
This case is considered a significant event in Syria's transitional period, as it is one of the first major court rulings against former high-ranking officials.