Syrian refugees launch legal bid to try Assad for crimes against humanity

International criminal court asked to rule in case brought by 28 people who fled civil war

Syrian refugees who fled to Jordan after being tortured and witnessing massacres have submitted dossiers of evidence to the international criminal court in a novel attempt to prosecute President Bashar al-Assad.

Although Syria is not a signatory to the court, based in The Hague, lawyers in London are relying on a precedent set by the ICC in extending jurisdiction to the crime of forcible population transfers.

Last year, the court opened a preliminary investigation into the military leaders of Myanmar for alleged crimes against humanity involving deportation of its Rohingya people. Bangladesh, where the refugees fled, is a party to the Rome statute that established the ICC, as is Jordan, where millions of Syrian refugees now reside.

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There have been numerous efforts to persuade the ICC to act on allegations that the Assad regime committed war crimes through the use of chemical weapons and the mass murder of detainees. They have all failed so far because prosecutors in The Hague have not accepted they have jurisdiction to act.