US EditionSyrian President Grants General Amnesty, Excluding ‘Grave Violations Against the Syrian People’
The amnesty excludes serious crimes such as torture and human trafficking and offers conditional pardons and surrender windows to encourage compliance, officials said.
- On Wednesday, February 18, 2026, Syrian transitional President Ahmed Al-Sharaa issued Legislative Decree No., granting a general amnesty for crimes before Feb. 17, excluding major offenses.
- A day earlier, Mazloum Abdi, Commander‑in‑Chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces, announced a general amnesty in Western Kurdistan, saying the 'phase of war has ended' and detainees would be released.
- The five‑page decree specifies full and partial pardons for misdemeanors and certain felonies, while the Minister of Justice must form a medical committee and applications must be filed within two months to the Public Prosecution Office or prison administrations.
- The decree sets short compliance windows: kidnappers have one month to release abductees, escapees 60 days to surrender, and unlicensed weapons holders three months to hand in arms.
- The decree preserves victims' personal rights and compensation claims, enters into force upon publication in the official gazette, and aligns with the Jan. 29 agreement for SDF integration under the Syrian Ministry of Defense.
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19 Articles
Syria's President Ahmed al-Sharaa has issued reductions in prison sentences and dismissals. Excluded are serious crimes. ISIS members are to be transferred.
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa issued a general amnesty for crimes committed before Feb. 17, excluding torture and major offenses.
Syrian President Grants General Amnesty, Excluding ‘Grave Violations Against the Syrian People’
President Ahmad Al-Sharaa issued Legislative Decree No. 39 of 2026 on Wednesday, granting a broad general amnesty for crimes committed before its issuance while explicitly excluding “grave violations against the Syrian people.” The decree—one of the most expansive since the fall of the former regime in December 2024—covers offenses committed prior to February 18, 2026. Key Reductions and Exemptions Life imprisonment and life internment are reduc…
The Syrian Presidency announced on Wednesday evening the issuance of a new decree granting a general amnesty for a number of crimes committed before its issuance date, along with the reduction of other penalties. This decision was made by President Ahmed al-Sharaa within Decree No. 39 of 2026, based on the provisions of the Constitutional Declaration and what it described as "the requirements of the supreme national interest"...
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