Swedish court acquits former Syrian army general accused of involvement in war crimes

JAN M. OLSEN, Associated Press

7 mins ago

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) —

A Swedish court on Thursday acquitted a former Syrian army general who was accused of involvement in war crimes in his home country over a decade ago.

Brigadier General Mohammed Hamo, who now lives in Sweden, was charged in February with aiding and abetting crimes against international law. Prosecutors said that as head of the weapons department of the Syrian army’s 11th Division, he was responsible for supplying the weapons used to commit war crimes in 2012.

Syria has been rocked by civil war for over 13 years.

Little is known about Hamo, 65. He deserted the Syrian army in July 2012 and joined those seeking to oust President Bashar al-Assad. Syrian opposition activists say he was involved in fighting in the once rebel-held Baba Amr neighborhood of Homs, Syria’s third-largest city.

Hamo was living in central Sweden when he was arrested on December 7, 2021, for his alleged involvement in war crimes. A court at the time released him two days later, saying there was insufficient evidence to keep him in custody. He has since been released.

Unrest in Syria between Assad’s regime and opposition groups began in March 2011 and later escalated into a civil war that left nearly half a million people dead and forced half of the country’s pre-war population of 23 million to flee.

The trial at Stockholm District Court began on April 15. The last court session took place on May 21.