Alaa Mousa
Syrian war criminal
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Alaa Mousa, commonly referred to as Alaa M. in German legal documents due to privacy laws, is a Syrian doctor who was convicted by the Frankfurt Higher Regional Court for crimes against humanity.
Biography and career
Alaa Mousa was born in 1984 or 1985 in Syria.[1][2] He graduated medical studies in Syria and began working as a civilian doctor.[3] As with all Syrian medical graduates, he was obligated to complete an internship at either civilian or military hospitals in order to receive his specialization certificate.[4] He worked in military hospitals in Homs and Damascus — the most notable ones between 2011-2012 were hospital 608 in Homs and hospital 6012 in Damascus, in the early days of the Syrian civil war.[3][4][5]
Alleged crimes in Syria
During his time working in military hospitals he was accused of committing torture and murder along with crimes against humanity, which included: torture of about 18 people among them a teenager who he set fire to his genitals and another detainee he gave a lethal injection after resisting beating.[3][4][5] He performed surgery on prisoners without giving them the right amount of anesthesia and attempted to deprive opposition detainees of their ability to reproduce.[2][4][5] He was also involved in systematic abuse, including physical and psychological torture, that often resulting in death of detainees.[1][4][5]
Move to Germany
In 2015 Mousa relocated to Germany. He entered the country with a visa for highly skilled workers along with thousands of Syrian refugees and medical professionals who run away from the conflict.[2][3] He then worked in Germany as an orthopedic doctor. In June 2020 he was arrested by German authorities after being recognized by witnesses and survivors who reported about his past crimes.[2][6][5]
Trial
On January 2022 his trial began at the Higher Regional Court in Frankfurt.[2][3] This case was conducted under Germany’s universal jurisdiction laws, allowing prosecution for crimes committed abroad.[3][5] The trial, which lasted three years, was the first time a trial on state torture in Syria had taken place worldwide.[5] Mousa admitted being present while prisoners were tortured but claimed he was powerless to help them. He accused the prosecution witnesses of forming a "conspiracy" against him because he was a Christian.[7]
On June 16, 2025 Mousa was found guilty of crimes against humanity, torture, war crimes, and two murders. During sentencing, Judge Christoph Koller described him as a sadist who "enjoyed harming people that he considered inferior and of lower value to himself".[8] Mousa was sentenced to life imprisonment with preventive detention after 15 years.[1][3]