US court sentences former Syrian official from Assad era to 60 years in prison on torture charges

Federal prosecutors said a U.S. judge sentenced a former Syrian government official who headed Damascus Central Prison under the deposed President Bashar al-Assad to 60 years in prison, and that a jury convicted him of torture.

Prosecutors charged Samir Othman Al-Sheikh, 74, in 2024, and he was convicted in March of conspiracy to commit torture and three counts of torture for his involvement in the mistreatment of prisoners at Adra Prison, the name by which it is known in Damascus.

The U.S. Department of Justice also said Al-Sheikh was convicted of lying to immigration authorities about his criminal conduct, obtaining a green card through fraud, and attempting to obtain U.S. citizenship.

Prosecutors said Al-Sheikh ordered his subordinates to inflict physical and psychological pain on prisoners to suppress opponents of the Assad government, and that he sometimes personally participated in such incidents.

The Justice Department stated that Al-Sheikh, who held several positions in the security apparatus, is the highest-ranking former official of the Assad government to be prosecuted and convicted in his personal capacity outside Syria.

Al-Sheikh’s defense team had sought a five-year prison sentence. In March, they said they were “disappointed” by his conviction. Al-Sheikh served as head of Adra Prison from 2005 to 2008 and had previously pleaded not guilty.

Syrian opposition forces ended the Assad family’s rule, which lasted more than 50 years, in late 2024 following a rapid advance.

Hundreds of thousands of people were killed in a civil war that lasted more than a decade, causing a global refugee crisis and turning cities across the country into ruins.