ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Syrian security forces arrested five former air force officers in Tartus province accused of carrying out airstrikes on populated areas during Bashar al-Assad’s rule, state media reported, citing an official.

“Our specialized units, in cooperation with the Counter-Terrorism Department, have carried out a series of precise security operations, leading to the arrest of five senior officers and leaders of the air force in the former regime,” said Abdul Aal Mohammad Abdul Aal, head of the coastal province’s internal security.

The arrests follow a similar operation earlier in September in Latakia, when internal security forces announced arresting nine Assad-era pilots suspected of involvement in “war crimes” during the time of Assad’s ousted regime. 

Investigations showed the arrested officers were involved in “the planning, management, and execution of air strikes … that targeted populated areas, resulting in the destruction of residential areas and infrastructure, the forced displacement of residents, and significant human casualties," Abdul Aal said.

An 11-day sweeping offensive by a group of rebels spearheaded by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), led by now President Ahmed al-Sharaa, brought the five-decade rule of the Assad family to an end on December 8, 2024.

The Assad regime has long been accused of myriad war crimes and serious violations of international law and human rights during the country’s 14-year-long civil war, including the use of chemical weapons, torture, enforced disappearances, sexual violence, and collective punishment.

An August 2024 report by the UK-based Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) said that over 113,000 individuals, including over 3,000 children, remain forcibly displaced at the hands of the parties in the Syrian civil war. The Assad regime forces were deemed responsible for over 85 percent of the total number.