Syria’s justice minister under scrutiny after videos show him overseeing executions

The videos, verified by the fact-checking network Verify-sy, appear to show Shadi al-Waisi reading the execution sentences of two women charged with “corruption and prostitution” in 2015.

“The platform Verify-sy conducted a thorough verification process using specialised technical tools to match the features and tone of voice clearly heard in at least one of the videos, with the features and voice of [Justice] Minister Shadi al-Waisi, who had recently appeared in several filmed interviews,” the network said in a statement.

“The results showed a high degree of match, despite the poor quality of the circulated recordings,” it added.

Verify-sy also reached out to several parties in the new Syrian government, with an anonymous senior official confirming that the man in the videos is Waisi.

The source said Waisi was a judge at the time.

The Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS)-led government has not commented on the footage.

“The content of the video presented to us documents the enforcement of the law at a specific time and place, where the procedures were carried out in accordance with the laws in effect at that time and as part of a procedural agreement,” the source added.

“However, we would like to point out that this process reflects a stage we have moved beyond in light of the current legal and procedural transformations, which makes it inappropriate to generalise it or use it to describe the current stage, given the differing circumstances and references.”

The resurfaced footage has been met with widespread criticism online from many Syrians who were previously critical of Bashar al-Assad and his government.

Some have questioned whether such punitive measures will be permitted under Syria’s new administration, while others have called for Waisi to be removed from office.