Damascus, June 16 (SANA) Achieving transitional justice in Syria requires the application of the law and fair trials to those responsible for serious crimes, a senior official at the National Transitional Justice Commission said on Tuesday.
Radif Mustafa, director of the commission’s Accountability and Justice Department, said justice cannot be achieved through political alignments or what he described as unregulated demands, stressing that legal accountability remains the primary path to securing victims’ rights.
“We understand people’s anger and their legitimate demands for accountability, redress and institutional reform,” Mustafa told SANA.
He said Syria’s transitional justice process is based on several pillars, including truth-seeking, legal accountability, reparations, preservation of memory, institutional reform, guarantees of non-recurrence and the promotion of peacebuilding.
Mustafa warned that political polarization could undermine the transitional justice process and called for adherence to the rule of law and peaceful civic action, saying that specialized courts remain the appropriate venue for pursuing justice.
In a statement issued on Monday, the commission said its work is founded on individual responsibility rather than revenge, stressing that collective punishment violates human rights and risks creating new grievances.
Syria has expanded efforts to advance transitional justice since Dec. 8, 2024.
On May 17, 2025, President Ahmad al-Sharaa issued Decree No. 20 establishing the National Transitional Justice Commission as an independent body with legal, financial and administrative autonomy.
The commission is tasked with uncovering the truth and pursuing accountability for serious violations committed under the deposed regime. It says accountability will extend beyond direct perpetrators to include those who ordered, incited, facilitated or participated in crimes.
F.J.M.Z.
