A former spokesman for a Syrian Islamist rebel group who operated from Turkey went on trial in France on Tuesday, accused of complicity in war crimes during Syria’s civil war, Agence France-Presse reported.
Majdi Nema, 36, told a Paris court there was no evidence to support the charges against him as his trial opened. French authorities arrested him in Marseille in 2020 after he arrived in the country on a student exchange program.
Nema, better known by his nom de guerre Islam Alloush, faces charges stemming from his time with Jaish al-Islam, a group that controlled rebel-held suburbs of Damascus. He told investigators he crossed into Turkey in 2013 and worked there as the group’s spokesman until 2016.
French prosecutors accuse him of helping recruit children and teenagers to fight. He faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
Rights groups, including the International Federation for Human Rights, filed a criminal complaint in 2019 that led to his arrest. France is pursuing the case under the principle of universal jurisdiction, which allows states to prosecute serious crimes committed abroad.
Jaish al-Islam, one of the largest factions fighting Bashar al-Assad’s forces during the war, has been accused of terrorizing civilians in areas it controlled.
Syria’s conflict, which began in 2011 with a government crackdown on protests, has killed more than half a million people and displaced millions.
Assad was eventually overthrown by Islamist-led fighters in December.
Turkey played a central role in Syria’s conflict, serving as a key backer of rebel groups fighting against Assad’s government. It hosted political opposition figures, provided military support to some factions and allowed fighters, including members of Jaish al-Islam, to operate from its territory.
Critics have accused Turkey of enabling abuses by opposition groups under its influence.