The man, living abroad, was arrested in the south of France. Among the materials provided include elements that could be used for the manufacture of chemical weapons.
Le Monde with AFP
A Franco-Syrian, at the head of a navigation company, was indicted in France and incarcerated, suspected of providing materials to the Syrian army, including components that can be used for the manufacture of ‘Chemical weapons, despite an international embargo.
The man, born in 1962 and living abroad, was arrested in the south of France, according to a source close to the file at the France-Press agency (AFP). “He had returned to France with his family for the holidays,” she added.
At the end of his custody, he was indicted on Saturday for “Agreement to commit crimes against humanity, complicity of crimes against humanity and complicity of war crimes”, as well as That for “whitening war crimes and crimes against humanity,” said Sunday at AFP a judicial source. He was placed in pre-trial detention, added this source.
This is the first time that a commissioning occurs in a survey in France on suspicions of support for the Syrian army, according to the source close to the file.
The facts that are reproached to him began in March 2011, the beginning of the civil war in Syria, and would be prosecuted until January 2018 or June 2019 according to the crimes referred to, said the judicial source. The man is suspected of providing support to the Syrian army through the acquisition of materials and components used directly for the surveillance and repression of the population, despite the international embargo.
“This man is criticized for having, through a society based in different places, in France and the United Arab Emirates, participated in the provision of means to different state structures of the Syrian regime in charge of production unconventional weapons, “developed the judicial source.
Of the materials provided include elements that have been used to make chemical weapons, specified the source close to the folder.
Black Treasury List
Investigations in France on this Franco-Syrian, whose identity has not been specified, began when he had been placed in 2016 with his Navigation Company on the Black Treasury No. responsible for financial penalties (OFAC). The company was suspected of having made merchandise from Damascus, in violation of the international embargo.
On the basis of the information collected by the Central Office for the Fight Against Humanity Crimes (OCCLC), a preliminary inquiry was opened in June 2017. The investigations were then entrusted to investigating judges of the Judicial court of Paris in January 2018.
In April 2021, three NGOs – the Syrian Center for the Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM), Open Society Justice Initiative (OSJI) and Syrian Archive – who had complained with civil party constitution, obtained The opening of a judicial information in Paris on chemical attacks perpetrated in 2013 in Syria and attributed to the bachar al-Assad regime. These are attacks in August in Adra and Duma (450 wounded) and in Eastern Ghouta, where more than a thousand people, according to American information, were killed by Sarin gas.
These NGOs had already seized justice in Germany in October 2020 for the 2013 facts, but also for a sarin gas attack perpetrated in April 2017 in Khan Sheikhoun, between Damascus and Aleppo. In April, they also filed, with a fourth NGO – Civil Rights Defenders – a complaint in Sweden for these 2013 and 2017 attacks.