Transitional Justice and Atrocity Prevention in Syria

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The fall of the brutal Assad regime in December 2024 opens enormous opportunities for the Syrian people to rebuild their society after decades of suffering. Transitional justice for Syria is a critical part of this rebuilding process, with multiple ambitious plans for Syrian transitional justice mechanisms currently under intense discussion. But Syria remains highly fragile, and at great risk for new outbreaks of large-scale violence and atrocity crimes. Transitional justice is meant to include "guarantees of non-recurrence:" forward-looking contributions to a successful transition to a peaceful and rights-respecting society, as well as accountability for perpetrators, reparations and other forms of support for victims, and institutional reforms. How can accountability, reparations, and reform help reduce the risk of new mass atrocities in Syria?

Please join our panel of five distinguished experts in this discussion-based webinar on transitional justice and atrocity prevention in Syria.

Fadel Abdulghany, Executive Director, Syrian Network for Human Rights
Fadel Abdulghany founded the Syrian Network for Human Rights in 2011. He holds a Master’s degree in International Law from De Montfort University, Leicester, UK. In recognition of his tireless efforts in human rights advocacy, Mr. Abdulghany was awarded the prestigious 2023 Franco-German Prize for Human Rights. Over the past 13 years, Mr. Abdulghany has significantly contributed to hundreds of reports and investigations involved in analyzing and exposing gross violations of fundamental human rights. He also authors research papers, contributes to news reports, and addresses international forums, including the UN Security Council and Human Rights Council.
Assaad Al Achi, President, Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression
Asaad Al Achi is a Syrian economist and civil society activist, and currently President of the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression and co-coordinator of the Syria Resource Group. He was the Director of Baytna, a civil society support organization working on democratic transition in Syria and empowering civic actors through grants and capacity building. Prior, he was a senior economist in Aberdeen, Scotland. A founding member of the Local Coordination Committees in Syria, Assaad joined the Syrian revolutionary movement in 2011. He graduated from the American University of Beirut with a Bachelors in Business Administration and holds an MBA from INSEAD. He currently lives in Brussels, Belgium.

Bassam Alahmad, Executive Director, Syrians for Truth and Justice
Bassam Alahmad is a Syrian human rights defender and the current Co-Founder and Executive Director of Syrians for Truth and Justice, an organization concerned with documenting human rights violations throughout Syria, which was launched in 2016. He also worked as a consultant with the International Federation of Human Rights, formerly at the Violations Documentation Center in Syria, one of the first centers to document human rights violations in Syria after the uprising broke out in 2011, operating as a project of the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression. He graduated from Damascus University, which was the trigger that helped him get involved in the public oppositionist activities against the Syrian government back then.
Razan Rashidi, Executive Director, The Syria Campaign
Razan Rashidi is the Executive Director of The Syria Campaign, a human rights organization dedicated to assisting Syria's heroes in their battle for freedom, justice, and democracy. She has nearly two decades of experience working in development and humanitarian programs, advocacy campaigns, and cultural initiatives to drive social change. Since 2005, Ms. Rashidi has worked as a media specialist in a variety of United Nations offices across Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan, and as a consultant with numerous other Syrian and international organizations in the field of media trainings. Ms. Rashidi earned a bachelor's degree in International Relations from the University of Damascus and an MA degree in Global Media and Transnational Communications from Goldsmiths University in London.

Beth van Schaack, Distinguished Fellow, Center for Human Rights and International Justice, Stanford University
Prior to returning to Stanford, Dr. Van Schaack served as Ambassador-at-Large for Global
Criminal Justice in the U.S. State Department office. GCJ advises the Secretary of State and the Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights on issues related to war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. Prior to returning to public service, Dr. Van Schaack was the Leah Kaplan Visiting Professor in Human Rights at Stanford Law School and directed Stanford’s International Human Rights & Conflict Resolution Clinic. Earlier in her career, she was a practicing lawyer at the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunals for Rwanda and the Former Yugoslavia in The Hague. Dr. Van Schaack is a graduate of Stanford (BA), Yale (JD) and Leiden (PhD) Universities.

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